American Tennis star Frances Tiafoe had to face the wrath of Italian fans as they booed him for delivering an under-arm serve against local upstart Lorenzo Musetti. This match for Tiafoe was a roller-coaster ride as the tie was suspended due to persistent rain on Monday, May 15. However, the match was completed on Tuesday, May 16.
At the restart, the No 18 seed Musetti defeated Tiafoe 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 to advance to the last 16 of the Rome Masters. But going back to the 15th, the American was on top after winning the first set 7-5. But then Tiafoe attempted his under-arm serve which was perfectly picked up by Musetti, who then manage to take advantage and win the match.
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Throughout the match, Frances Tiafoe was frustrated with playing conditions as there was constant rain during the fixture. He said, "It's absolutely pouring with rain. The lines are slick as hell. How are we playing?" This prompted another response from the umpire, saying: "If the court is fit to play we have to continue."
Further Tiafoe stated that the match continued only because his opponent was an Italian. The American said, "How are we playing on this court right now? How! How are we possibly playing on this court when it's raining this hard? I don't care! How are we playing on this? How? You're joking. Every single one of you is playing tricks. Of course, you won't stop this as I'm playing an Italian."
