Olga Puchkova gets thrown out of match after hitting a line judge with a ball
Olga Punchkova was defaulted in her second round match at the Citi Open after hitting a line judge with a ball in frustration after a lost point.
Punchkova, known to get testy on the court at times, was trailing 3-6, 6-3, 4-1 on Thursday in Washington D.C. when a ball she hit nailed a line judge in the knee, knocking the line judge out of the chair and causing a bruise.
The above video is fairly grainy, but you see her swipe at the ball without really looking in the direction of the judge, and Punchkova already released a statement saying there was no intent to hit anyone with the ball.
"I wasn't looking where the tennis ball would go," she said, apologizing, but rules are rules, and after consulting with both the chair umpire and Punchkova, tournament director Melanie Tabb said she had to retire the 25-year-old Russian from her match.
