Paraguayan Tennis Player Fined Rs 61 Lakh For After Making Sexist Remark On Referee

Paris: The French Open 2026 is underway currently, and it has grabbed the attention of the viewers with many upsets taking place in the competition so far. However, the spectators got one more talking point about the tournament as Paraguayan tennis player Adolfo Vallejo was fined a hefty 65,000 US Dollars (around RS 61 lakh) after he made sexist remarks at the chair umpire, Ana Carvalho, after suffering a loss in the second round at Roland Garros.

Tournament director Amelie Mauresmo confirmed the development via a statement on Monday and said that half of the player’s tournament prize money has been imposed as a fine on him due to disciplinary violations.

“This is clearly unacceptable. Once again, such remarks have no place here,” Mauresmo told reporters.

The 22-year-old from Paraguay had criticised Carvalho during an interview with Clay magazine. He said that the Brazilian referee was not strong enough to handle the crowd in his second-round defeat against French teenager Moise Kouame. He also added that the match should have been officiated by a man.

“This sort of match needs to be umpired by a man. It’s very difficult for a woman to do it. It has to be refereed by a man, because it’s a very demanding crowd and you need a lot of strength to go against the crowd,” he said.

“The crowd was very out of line, but I understand they’re supporting their compatriot. It’s quite an intense crowd and that’s why I was prepared. I already knew it would be like that and, to be honest, it didn’t harm me, but rather strengthened him,” he added.

The controversy occurred after one of the most thrilling matches of the tournament, as Vallejo appeared to take the match in three straight sets, but a bounce-back from Kouame resulted in his defeat. He was leading and had won the first two sets by 6-3, 7-5 and was leading in the third set as well.

However, the teenager mounted a comeback to win the contest by 3-6, 5-7, 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (8) in a marathon contest.

The tournament has witnessed many upsets so far, with many of the top seeds already knocked out. The men’s singles draw is wide open with Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner already out, and Carlos Alcaraz’s withdrawal from the tournament.