Video - When Tiafoe Lost It and Insulted the Chair Umpire in Shanghai in 2024

Last year, in the third round of the Shanghai Masters 1000, Frances Tiafoe and Roman Safiullin were battling for a spot in the round of 16 in China. After a very intense and closely contested match that went down to the wire, it was ultimately the Russian who managed to secure his ticket to the next round (5-7, 7-5, 7-6 in 3 hours and 4 minutes).

However, at the net, after the handshake, the American cracked and insulted the umpire over an incident that had occurred just minutes earlier. While the two players were tied at 5-5 in the decisive third-set tiebreak, Tiafoe took too long to serve according to the chair umpire, who then issued him a warning.

Forced to serve a second ball, the American, who had previously tried to justify himself to the umpire, did not succeed and subsequently lost the point. On the following point, Safiullin served an ace, his 17th of the match, to seal his victory.

After still congratulating his opponent at the net, the 27-year-old player, who was then the 13th seed, then vented his frustration on the umpire with repeated insults.

"Fuck you, man, fuck you! Seriously, fuck you! Damn it. You ruined the match, do your fucking job! I've been fighting and pushing myself for three fucking hours, playing my heart out. You're going to be banned from my matches," Tiafoe then told the ATP official (see video below).

The incident, which quickly spread across the tennis world, sparked strong reactions. Ultimately, a few weeks later, the ATP fined the player twice: the first fine of $60,000 for verbal abuse, and the second, also $60,000, for aggravated behavior.

Tiafoe could still consider himself lucky, however, as he was not suspended from the tour and was not disqualified for his behavior, which allowed him to keep his prize money and points earned during the tournament.