Tennis officials faced strong criticism after Lorenzo Musetti received a warning for unsportsmanlike conduct during his Roland Garros quarterfinal against Frances Tiafoe on Tuesday. The incident occurred when Musetti accidentally hit a line judge with a kicked tennis ball.

Unlike many major tournaments that use electronic line-calling systems, Roland Garros still employs human line judges to make in-or-out calls

on the court. This traditional approach played a role in the controversy.

The match was tense, with Musetti falling behind 5-3 in the second set on Court Philippe-Chatrier. Frustrated after losing a game, he lightly kicked a ball with his left foot while preparing to serve again. The ball unintentionally struck a female line judge positioned behind him. The chair umpire quickly issued a warning for a code violation. Since it was Musetti’s first offense, no further penalty was imposed.

Tennis fans highlight double standards as Lorenzo Musetti escapes default

As soon as the incident went viral, tennis fans reacted quickly. Most of them criticized the ATP for showing double standards compared to Novak Djokovic’s default at the 2020 US Open.

The Serbian player was disqualified after hitting a lineswoman during his fourth-round match against Pablo Carreno Busta. As a result, he lost all the ranking points he was expected to gain from that tournament.

A similar situation occurred with Denis Shapovalov. The Canadian was defaulted during a Davis Cup tie after accidentally hitting the chair umpire in the eye with a ball in frustration. Shapovalov accepted the decision without protest.

Lorenzo Musetti and Frances Tiafoe have not yet commented on the incident. However, based on the footage, Tiafoe appeared unhappy with the decision to settle the matter with just a warning.

Lorenzo Musetti reaches second Grand Slam semifinal

Lorenzo Musetti’s impressive run on European clay courts in 2025 continued with another big win at Roland Garros. The 23-year-old Italian reached his first-ever semifinal at the tournament on Tuesday.

He defeated Frances Tiafoe in four sets, 6-2, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2, in a match that lasted two hours and 47 minutes. The battle was close for nearly three sets before Musetti took control, winning eight of the last ten games.

With this victory, Musetti improved his record to 19 wins and only three losses on clay this year. He will now face either defending champion Carlos Alcaraz or 12th seed Tommy Paul for a place in the final. Musetti’s win also gave him a boost in the PIF ATP Live Rankings. He moved up two positions to reach No. 5 and is now in a strong position to hit a new career high after the tournament.