Following her third-round loss to Jasmine Paolini, Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva came under fire on social media for disrespectful interactions with other players and was forced to issue a public apology. US Open Ball girl.
Video posted on social media showed an awkward moment when Putintseva appeared to give a cold shoulder to a ball girl during the second set of her 6-3, 6-4 loss on Saturday.
Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan reacts during her match against Jasmine Paolini of Italy during the third round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024, in New York City. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
Putintseva stood motionless, visibly frustrated, as the ball girl bowled the two balls. Tennis ball, He hits her with each ball, one by one, and then finally tries to catch the third one.
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The exchange immediately drew loud boos from the crowd and even stronger reactions on social media.
“Everyone should respect these baseball boys equally. They work hard too. I respect them,” one person wrote on X's post.
“Total disrespect. She's a terrible example,” added another.
“How you treat those below you says a lot about your character,” another wrote.
Ben Shelton of the United States fist bumps Francis Tiafoe of the United States and a ball boy during the men's singles third round match on day five of the 2024 U.S. Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on August 30, 2024. (Mike Staub/Getty Images)
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Following the criticism, Putintseva posted an apology on her social media accounts.
She explained that her anger was directed at her own performance and that she had been “deep in thought” at the time of the awkward exchange.
“I want to apologize to the ball girl for my behavior when she was handing me the ball. To be honest, it wasn't her fault. I was really upset that I didn't win the game from a break point and my emotions were going blank and my thoughts were running deep and I couldn't even concentrate on what was going on or who was handing me the ball… All the ball girls. [were] As always, he performed well at the Open.”
Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan reacts against Jasmine Paolini of Italy during the third round of women's singles on day six of the 2024 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in the Flushing neighborhood of Queens on August 31, 2024 in New York City. (Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
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Putintseva's US Open journey ended in the third round with a loss to Italy's Jasmine Poirierini. She advanced to the round of 16, where she will face Karolina Muchova.
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