Gael Monfils raced to a straight-sets win over Alexander Bublik at the Citi Open, but the lack of effort in a return game at the end landed him a code violation warning.
The Frenchman was leading 6-3 5-3 in the match, with Bublik serving to reduce the arrears. With the Kazakh going 40-0 on his serve, Monfils began trudging to his chair just when Bublik was already midway through his service motion. Bublik's serve was in and held.
In Monfils' mind, the game looked beyond his reach, and he was already thinking of closing the match on his own serve after the changeover. But that moment caught the chair umpire's eye, Fergus Murphy, who handed the 36-year-old a code violation warning for 'lack of best efforts'.
While it was a fair call by the chair umpire's judgment, Monfils was unhinged and contested the decision during the change of ends, but it was not audible to hear exactly what transpired between him and the chair umpire. Bublik, however, saw the funny side of it and started laughing.
Nevertheless, Monfils managed to round off the win under the lights despite needing four bites of the cherry and saving a couple of break points in the 10th game. It was his first Top 25 win in 17 months in front of his wife Elina Svitolina, who had earlier during the day romped to a straight sets win over Daria Kasatkina.
Monfils has been inspired by Svitolina's recent return to action after a maternity break and says he feels like a champion. The 2016 Citi Open champion has endured an injury-ravaged season having only returned to competition in early March and then picked up a mid-season injury during this year's French Open.
Victory over Bublik was the first time he has managed to win back-to-back matches on Tour this year, and he will face 12th seed Tallon Griekspoor in the third round on Thursday.
Monfils receives lack of effort warning when leading by a set and a break
by u/BelgianBond in tennis
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