Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva was booed during her third-round match against Italy's Jasmine Paolini at the 2024 U.S. Open on Saturday following an awkward moment with a ball girl.
Putintseva faced criticism over her attitude and behavior towards the ball girl while losing the second set, which can be seen in a video currently going viral on X.
The 29-year-old pro was standing on the court facing the crowd when a ball girl nearby tossed two balls to him, but they bounced right off the court.
Then she looked down at the second ball, which had hit her foot and bounced to the side.
Putintseva, who appeared frustrated at the moment, caught the third ball and then picked up the remaining two.
Beauregard appeared shocked by the turn of events, stood with her hands up and ran off.
The crowd seemed shocked and booed Putintseva.
Paolini won in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4.
Former world number one German tennis player Boris Becker slammed Putintseva's behavior during the exchange.
“Who does Putintseva think she is… What a terrible attitude towards a ball girl!!!” Becker wrote: X also released a video of the moment.
Putintseva said: He seemed to be talking to someone She was in the stands and didn't seem to notice the first or second ball being thrown to her.
Putintseva later apologised, explaining that she had become emotional.
“I want to apologize to the ball girl for my behavior when she was handing me the ball,” Putintseva wrote on her Instagram Story in a since-deleted post. “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 so blank that I was lost in thought and not even concentrating on what was going on or who was going to give me the ball… All the ball kids were playing great as usual at the Open.”
With her win on Saturday, Paolini became the first Italian player to reach the round of 16 at every Grand Slam tournament in a single year.
The 28-year-old Italian reached the fourth round at the Australian Open and the finals at the French Open and Wimbledon this year.
The 2024 U.S. Open will run through September 8 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City.
