What happened in the closing seconds of Lucia Bronzetti’s match against Taylor Townsend at the 2024 Miami Open left her clearly angry.
The players engaged in a fierce battle that ultimately resulted in a final set in the competition. Townsend was ahead 30-0 at the time of the contentious incident and had won the last set 5-4.
Townsend was lobed by Bronzetti after he hurried to the net during a crucial rally. The American was running to the baseline when she saw that the ball was going wide, so she let it fly out.
Bronzetti argued that she should have won the point, but the umpire ignored it and let it go. She was correct; according to the rules, she should have had the point because Townsend had made the play that would have awarded the point to her opponent.
Nevertheless, since it guaranteed her three match points, the American didn’t really feel the need to correct the umpire. After that game, she was up 40-0 and able to close off the match.
Despite losing to Coco Gauff in Indian Wells, Broneztti wasn’t going to let it go. She shared video evidence of the incident on social media and included a fairly inflammatory remark.
She criticized Townsend for his lack of sportsmanship and the umpire for his failure to make the call.
It’s challenging to determine how easily spottable the circumstances were for the umpire, but this is their responsibility. Townsend most likely saw that her racket had been touched as well, but she chose not to alert the umpire.
Watch this and be the judge of sportsmanship yourself.
A blatant touch went unnoticed by the umpire and unconceded by the opponent. #taylortownsend #luciabronzetti pic.twitter.com/DNCRmKZU3n
— Tennis GIFs 🎾🎥 (@tennis_gifs) March 19, 2024