In a truly bizarre moment at the Hamburg Open, French tennis star Corentin Moutet expressed his frustration over losing a point by stripping off his shorts. During a Round of 32 match against Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, the Frenchman was caught scrambling to recover after his opponent attempted a lob shot.
The Incident
Moutet jumped to keep the rally alive but left Davidovich Fokina with an easy backhand down the line. Moutet stretched to save the point and managed to return the ball, but could not recover in time as the Spaniard sent his shot behind the Frenchman to win the point. While Moutet has developed a reputation for being lively on the ATP tour, his reaction to losing the point shocked many in the crowd as he pulled down his shorts to his ankles. A few audible gasps, laughs, and whistles were heard as Moutet soon pulled his pants back up.
Consequences
The chair umpire assessed Moutet a warning for unsportsmanlike conduct before the match continued as normal. Later in the match, Moutet reverted to a more common form of expressing anger by smashing his racquet against the wall. Moutet eventually lost the match in straight sets, falling 6-4, 6-4 to his Spanish opponent.
Historical Parallel
Perhaps surprisingly, this is not the first time a tennis player has reacted to a point by pulling their pants down. In the second round at Roland Garros during the 2004 French Open, Russian tennis player Marat Safin celebrated winning a point against Spaniard Felix Mantilla by pulling his shorts down. Safin was assessed a one-point penalty for the gesture but still managed to win the match and advance. The same result did not materialize for Moutet.
Meanwhile, Davidovich Fokina will move on to the Round of 16 to face Alex de Minaur.
