Stefanos Tsitsipas protested against Carlos Alcaraz's "extended" grunt during their quarterfinal match at Roland Garros and called for the chair umpire to step in.
For the sixth time without a reply, Tsitsipas lost to Alcaraz. The Spaniard only needed one break of serve to win the first set 6-3. The Greek rescued the situation momentarily when he recovered a break deficit in the second set to force a tie-break.
While trailing 1-5 in the breaker, Tsitsipas complained to the umpire, Aurelie Tourte, about the issue. He felt that Alcaraz's grunt was becoming distracting, especially in the last shot before the changeover when the ninth seed was set to make contact with the ball and could hear the grunt.
"When I’m about to hit the shot, there is an extended grunt. The grunt is extended. It’s like a millisecond before I hit it.
"I never complain about this but it’s frustrating. When I’m about to hit the shot… and moments before I hit the shot, I still hear the grunt. It’s not during the shot, it’s right before."
Tsitsipas' protests were met with boos from the crowd, and after Alcaraz won the second set, he would raise the issue again. The third seed overheard the conversation and could be seen smiling as he crossed the net at the change of ends.
Nevertheless, Alcaraz kept a cool head in the sandstorm to come away with a straight-sets win. As the two players approached each other for the post-match handshake, they let bygones be bygones, and Tsitsipas appeared to clear the air.
Tsitsipas has exited the singles tournament but remains in contention to win the doubles title together with brother Petros. They are scheduled to play their third-round match on Wednesday. Alcaraz, meanwhile, will face new World No. 1 Jannik Sinner in Friday's semifinal.
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