A fan was expelled from the US Open, after a complaint by the German tennis player Alexander Zverev. He pointed out that someone in the stands had shouted a “Hitler quote”.
The incident occurred when Zverev was serving in the fourth set of his round of 16 battle with Italy’s Jannik Sinner, on the night of Monday (4) to Tuesday (5), at Center Court at Flushing Meadows.
Zverev, who was the winner of the match, went to chair umpire James Keovathong to complain about the alleged scream.
“He just said the most famous quote from Hitler that exists in this world,” the tennis player told the referee, referring to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. “This is incredible.”
Keothavong immediately consulted security officers in the stands so that the person responsible could be identified.
After a few minutes, security went to a man who was sitting in one of the first rows and ordered him to leave the stadium.
“I love it when the fans scream, I love it when the fans get emotional, but I think as a German and not really proud of that history, it’s not really a good thing to do,” Zverev said after the game.
“If I didn’t react, I think it would be bad of me,” added the tennis player.
Night games at the 23,000-seat Arthur Ashe Court are famous for their loud, electric atmosphere, which has also drawn criticism from players such as Daniil Medvedev, who calls for silence at times like the serve.
Last week, German player Laura Siegemund also protested against the behavior of the public in her first-round loss to American Coco Gauff, a favorite of local fans.
“They didn’t respect me, they didn’t respect my way of playing, they didn’t respect the player that I am, they didn’t respect good tennis,” Siegemund said, in tears.
