 "French Open 2024: Focus on unruly, disrespectful local fans at Roland Garros")
Former World No. 7 David Goffin claimed a chewing gum was spat in his direction by a French Open spectator as he faced local player Giovanni Mpetshi Perrichard on Court 14 at Roland Garros. The Belgian warned that tennis is in danger of descending into the grip of “hooligans”.
When he left the arena, he cupped his ear to all four sides to counter the jeers.
“When you are insulted for three and a half hours, you have to annoy the public a little,” Goffin said.
“Clearly, it goes too far, it’s total disrespect. It’s becoming like football, soon there will be smoke bombs, hooligans and there will be fights in the stands.
“It’s ridiculous. Some are there more to make a scene than to set the mood.”
After the match on Tuesday, the 33-year-old added: “Today, someone spat out their chewing gum at me.”
😠 The Paris crowd booed David Goffin after he knocked out Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in Round 1 at #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/R58Zmzzq1f
— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) May 29, 2024
On Wednesday, women’s World No 1 Iga Swiatek had a word of advice for the loud, but disrespectful, fans in Paris.
As Swiatek struggled to fend off Naomi Osaka in their classic clash in the second round on Court Philippe Chatrier, a mid-point shout from the crowd left her visibly frustrated.
“Sometimes under a lot of pressure, when you scream something during the rally, it is very distracting and hard to focus,” Swiatek said while addressing fans on Court Philippe Chatrier after the match.
“This is serious for us and sometimes it is hard to accept. The stakes are big and we are playing for a lot of money. If you could support us before the rallies but not during.
“I love you guys and I always love playing here so let’s continue that.”
Iga Świątek appeals to the French crowd, asking them to respect players focus by not making noise during the rallies.
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) May 29, 2024
Her ask was met with supportive applause. #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/8k8w6Ve4lL
Swiatek touched on the incident in her post-match press conference as well. “It happened more times, especially before the returns, and that’s why I wanted to speak out about it, because if it would happen one time, I would just let it go,” Swiatek said of fans crying out during play.
“I know the French crowd is enthusiastic. Yeah, but for now in tennis we have these kind of rules that there should be, like, more silence in the audience, and I just wanted to point out that it’s not easy for us.”
The Pole, however, was hopeful her gentle reprimand would not turn the fans against her.
“But I know that French crowds can be kind of harsh, so I don’t want to be under the radar right now,” said a smiling Swiatek.
“So, yeah, I don’t know if that was a good decision or not.”
French women’s No. 1 Caroline Garcia said she “feels sorry” for Goffin.
“Thank God I never experience it, and I hope it will never happen again,” said Garcia after being knocked out of the tournament by Sofia Kenin on Wednesday.
“In every sport sometimes there are fans who go too far. We are all here to play tennis and we are all here to watch and enjoy tennis. Even if we have our favourite player we want to cheer with respect.”
Before Swiatek took court, tournament officials reminded spectators of the need to behave.
“The crowd brings an incredible fervour,” they said in a statement.
“But it is obvious that this must be done with respect for all the players. While it is normal for fans to come and share their enthusiasm and cheer on their favourites, this should in no way compromise the values of tennis and consideration for the players.”
On Tuesday, defending champion Novak Djokokic was jeered by fans who were convinced he was taking too long to dust himself down after a tumble in his win against France’s Pierre-Hugues Herbert.
This is not the first Roland Garros where players have complained about the home fans who have resorted to desperate measures to urge a French athlete on. There has been no French men’s singles champion at Roland Garros since 1983 when Yannick Noah lifted the title. Among the women, the last singles champion was Mary Pierce in 2000.
At last year’s French Open, fans were branded as “embarrassing” and even “feral”.
🇧🇾🇺🇦🎾 Ukrainian tennis player Marta Kostyuk was booed at the Roland Garros tournament after she refused to shake hands with the Belarusian tennis player.
— MARIA (@its_maria012) May 29, 2023
The incident occurred after the match between Marta Kostyuk and the second best tennis player of the world, pic.twitter.com/hNwaOwdIao
On the opening day, Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk was booed for refusing to shake hands with Belarusian opponent Aryna Sabalenka in protest over the ongoing war in her country.
“I want to see people react to it in 10 years when the war is over. I think they will not feel really nice about what they did,” said Kostyuk. “People should be embarrassed.”
Taylor Fritz on infamous Roland Garros 🤫:
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) June 30, 2023
“They literally threw a party every time I missed a 1st serve. I was respectful bc I didn’t want to make it worse the whole time. But when it was over I said ‘Whatever, if I’m going to take this s**t for 3 hours, I’m allowed to do this” pic.twitter.com/kKuAZ7IQnx
In 2023, Taylor Fritz was irritated by a partisan night-time crowd desperate to push Arthur Rinderknech into the third round.
At one stage, fans even sang the French national anthem.
When he got the job done, Fritz placed his finger to his lips to shush his tormentors before mockingly blowing kisses.
The jeers continued as he attempted to carry out the traditional on-court TV interview.
“The crowd was just so great that I had to let it fire me up. They cheered so well for me, I wanted to make sure I won. Thanks guys,” the American said sarcastically.
Djokovic is having some fun with the crowd at Roland Garros 😅
— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) June 4, 2023
Watch the match LIVE on Eurosport and @discoveryplusUK 📺 pic.twitter.com/niccqvi8BD
Last year Djokovic chose to mimic the crowd’s boos after he was targeted for taking a medical time-out in his victory against Spain’s Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
“There are people who love to boo every single thing you do,” said Djokovic. “When somebody is disrespectful he or she deserves to have an answer to that.”
French players defend crowd
Despite Goffin’s irritations with the crowd, Perricard said he enjoyed the support of the fans left frustrated by rain delays which had caused a five-hour suspension.
“It’s really fantastic to have these guys there,” said the 20-year-old.
France’s Lucas Pouille, a former top-10 player, said fans at Roland Garros had not particularly crossed the line.
“It adds spice to a sport that can sometimes be flat,” he told Eurosport.
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