Coco Gauff hits a return shot against Donna Vekic of Croatia during the third round of tennis at Court Philippe Chatrier at Roland Garros Stadium at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
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US tennis star Coco Gauff has been eliminated from the women’s singles competition at the Paris Olympics after a dramatic straight-sets defeat to 13th seed Donna Vekic in a match that also sparked on-court controversy at Roland Garros Stadium.
World number two Gauff was trailing Vekic 3-2 in the second set but any chance of a comeback was quickly dashed when chair umpire Jaume Kampistor overturned a line call in Vekic’s favour.
Shortly after Gauff served, a line judge ruled Vekic’s return shot from the baseline out, almost at the same time that Gauff smashed the ball into the net, but Kampistor overturned the call and awarded Vekic the point. Instead of a deuce, the match went to Vekic, who led 4-2.
Gauff later argued the point should have been replayed, saying hearing the “out” call influenced her shot. Campistol disagreed. The 20-year-old Gauff, who faced a similarly tough situation at Roland Garros earlier this summer, grew emotional as she sought a fair resolution.
“That happens all the time on this court,” Gauff told the judge, later adding, “I feel like I’m always being cheated.”
The match was a sudden upset for Gauff, who bore the U.S. flag at the opening ceremony on Friday and had blitzed through the first two rounds of the tournament, including a 4-1 lead in the first set against Vekic.
But Croatia’s Vekic, who played in the longest women’s semifinal in Wimbledon history earlier this month, joined the fray and overcame 27 unforced errors in the first set with her forehand and efficient net play to eventually tie Gauff at six games apiece and force a tiebreak.
Gauff has two more chances to win a medal at the Paris Olympics, competing in women’s doubles and mixed doubles, and said after the match that she would now focus on doubles.
“I want to take something home,” Gauff said, according to the Associated Press.
Gauff, known for her ageless poise and confidence, said the contested points were important but may not have changed the outcome of Tuesday’s match, but repeated a point she made at the French Open earlier this year that tennis should follow other sports’ lead and introduce video review systems at all tournaments.
“I definitely think it’s almost ridiculous that we don’t have that at this point,” she said in June.
The U.S. Open became the first Grand Slam tournament to introduce electronic line calls in 2006. But Roland Garros officials have rejected implementing line technology such as the “Hawk-Eye” system, arguing that human umpires and referees are superior because of the special conditions on the red courts (i.e. dust).
There has been growing momentum in recent years to introduce video review tools at Grand Slam tournaments, and last summer the U.S. Open rolled out the system on some of its courts to test its performance.
