Kenin originally was upset about the court being wet. Sofia Kenin was angry. The American was attempting to play her opening match at the Italian Open against Italian (that is important later on) Lucia Bronzetti but it had recently rained and the court was damp. Too damp for Kenin’s liking and when the chair umpire advised the players they would need to continue playing, Kenin complained with not-so-nice words. Kenin did get her wish a couple of points later, however, when play was suspended due to court conditions. She was right that play should not have been ongoing, but her choice of words could have been better. She called officials “f*****g d*****a people, literally.”
She had a point, as playing in damp weather on any surface might result in harm to participants. Furthermore, the court was made of clay, which does not mix well with a wet ball. However, nearly half of Italians regard Americans as arrogant (and even more so by Italy’s Mediterranean counterparts in Greece), because Kenin was performing in front of an Italian audience, the reaction was fast and nasty.
Sofia Kenin gets quite angry, but for a good reason.
Kenin’s play against an Italian player most likely added to the intensity. The difficulty is that, while Americans may be perceived as arrogant, Italian tennis fans have a reputation for booing excessively. This includes some hostility aimed towards Andy Murray.
During Murray’s 2023 Italian Open match against Italian Fabio Fognini. Murray complained about a faulty line call and argued with the chair umpire. The audience yelled loudly, and Murray later commented on his Instagram account, “Stadium packed with Italians yelling and whistling, thinking I’m attempting to swindle Fabio out of point. All because (chair umpire Mo Lahyani) could not read a mark correctly. Cheers, mate.
Kenin didn’t want the fans to boo her for correctly stating that the battle should be temporarily paused. After breaking Bronzetti’s serve, Kenin yelled to the audience, “F*** you!” which elicited even louder boos.
A few points later, the action was once again delayed due to rain. Again, the American wasn’t
She was furious not because she was losing or because of a terrible line call, but rather because of the weather and court conditions. She had a valid point, given that the game had been paused several times. Though Bronzetti played no role in Sofia Kenin’s rage, Kenin did get what she most likely viewed as sweet retribution on the Italian fans by controlling the match against Bronzetti once play restarted. After the first set was knotted 3-3, Kenin would lose only two more games to win 6-3 6-2. This was her first WTA victory since January.
Leave a Reply