Sebastian Korda is now out of the Monte-Carlo Masters, but it has emerged that he was the victim of a crime before the tournament even began.
The American is a very talented player who is capable of strong results on clay. He showed that in the opening round in Monte-Carlo, where he demolished Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-1, 6-2.
Unfortunately, Korda then ran into Jannik Sinner in the second round, who has played the best tennis in the world so far in 2024. Sinner recorded a very impressive win, beating Korda for the loss of just three games.
Andy Roddick was particularly impressed with Sinner's performance in that contest and throughout the year. He said that what Sinner has been doing is not normal, and things could become scary if he gets even better.
However, it is impressive that Korda got himself into the right frame of mind to play those matches. This is because the 23-year-old had his watch stolen before the event started, an incident that left him shocked.
Francebleu has reported that this occurred on April 4th, two days before the tournament began. The thieves waited for Korda on a staircase that joins Avenue de France and Avenue Varavilla, which is a short distance from the courts.
Korda was immobilized by the two helmeted individuals before having his watch worth 300,000 euros stolen from him. The two criminals then fled on their scooter and are still being pursued by the police.
Thankfully, Korda was not injured during the crime. He was shaken by the incident, making his subsequent comfortable victory against Davidovich Fokina an excellent effort from him.
Hopefully, the two criminals will be apprehended by the police, and Korda's watch will be returned to him. It was certainly an upsetting event to happen for a tournament that usually has such a good reputation.