French Open tournament director addresses Miyu Kato controversial
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(Provided by Tennis World USA)
French Open tournament director Amelie Mauresmo took a neutral position when addressing the Miyu Kato controversy at Roland Garros. After Kato inadvertently hit a ball girl during her French Open women’s doubles round-of-16 match, the Japanese and her partner Aldila Sutjiadi were disqualified.
While some argued that every hit on a ball kid warrants a default, there were also many who came to Kato’s defense and argued that it was absurd to disqualify the Japanese. That same night, Kato took to Twitter to reveal that she was stripped of her tournament prize money and points.
But Kato was allowed to continue competing in the mixed doubles event as she and partner Tim Puetz ended up winning the title.
Mauresmo on the Kato controversy
“I think the locker room is pretty divided on this. I have heard, yes, a lot of people or a lot of players actually saying that it’s not fair.
I have heard some saying that, well, if you make a ball girl cry for about seven, eight minutes or more, then it means something. So, you know, I’m not going to comment, because when you see a video after you take a decision is always easier.
The decision has been made by the tour supervisor and the referee. Without seeing the video, you come to the court. You have to make a judgment based on something that you didn’t see, based on the fact that someone are reporting to you.
And when you see a ball girl cry for that long, I guess that’s when you have to make some kind of decision. It’s just facts. I’m not going to comment on whether it’s good or bad. It is what it is. Then it goes to the Grand Slam rule book, which is pretty clear.
It was also the decision of the tournament to keep her in the mixed doubles, which I think was also something positive at least for her,” Mauresmo said, via Tennis Up To Date. For 28-year-old Kato, it ended well as she became a Grand Slam champion and later met with the ball girl she hit and handed her a gift.
Read More: French Open tournament director addresses Miyu Kato controversial 2023-06-14 17:30:26