Many tennis stars at the Australian Open are annoyed because there are hardly any places for them to retreat to. The discussion was triggered by an incident involving Coco Gauff.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Coco Gauff smashes her racket in the catacombs after losing the Australian Open and is filmed doing so.
- Many tennis stars have subsequently complained about a lack of privacy.
- Tournament director Craig Tiley takes the accusations seriously and wants to take action.
A few days ago, Coco Gauff smashes her racket after her quarter-final defeat against Elina Svitolina at the Australian Open. You don't have to have any sympathy for this, but Gauff does it off the court. In a place where she feels unobserved. The fact that the pictures of her tantrum are doing the rounds therefore annoys Gauff. The 21-year-old is aware of her role model function: "I tried to go to a place where it wouldn't be filmed, but obviously it was. The only private place we have at this tournament is the changing room."
Some pros agree that there is a lack of privacy. Djokovic jokes at a press conference when asked about Gauff's action: "I'm surprised we're not being filmed in the showers as well. That's probably the next step." Djokovic is aware that fans like to take a look behind the scenes. But there are too many cameras for his taste. "There should be a limit, a boundary that clearly defines where our private space lies."
Iga Swiatek, the current world number 2 in the women's singles, agrees with Gauff. After her quarter-final defeat to Elena Rybakina, she says that it would be nice to have a little more privacy. "The question is: are we tennis players? Or are we animals in a zoo?"
Tournament organizers respond to accusations
Following criticism from various tennis stars, Craig Tiley, the director of the Grand Slam tournament, shows understanding and vows to do better. "We want to talk to the players. We want to know what they want and what they need. We will make the adjustments that we need to make," he promised.
