Social media users have been told to “just chill out” with their attacks on Rafael Jodar with John Isner urging the tennis community to give him a break as “he’s young”.
Not for the first time this season, Jodar has found himself at the centre of a controversial incident involving ball kids as he was overheard swearing during his fourth-round match against Botic van de Zandschulp at the Shanghai Masters.
Unhappy after a passing shot down the line was called long, the Spaniard told the ball kid, “Give me the f***** towel, damn it!” which prompted the chair umpire to give him a code violation for unsportsmanlike conduct.
The feisty 20-year-old argued with chair umpire Jimmy Pinoargote as he tried to claim he didn’t swear at the ball kid, stating: “We’ve been playing for an hour and ten minutes, man. The ball barely goes out, I just say something to him and you immediately give me a warning. It’s unbelievable, you can tell you’re not even on the court.”
But the Spanish-speaking official told him: “I understand, Rafa, but not like this. Rafa, ask me and I will ask them about it, but not like this.”
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The world No 13 was widely condemned online with the latest incident coming only a few months after he was accused of pushing a ball girl during the French Open, something that he denied doing as he claimed she tripped and fell backwards.
Although former world No 8 Isner insists players should always respect ball kids, he does believe there are mitigating circumstances for Jodar losing his cool.
“It’s just frustration, it’s hot as crap in Shanghai,” the American said on the Nothing Major podcast. “I mean I’m not excusing it, he’s had a few moments, he’s got to get a little better there but I think the criticism he’s receiving is, in my mind, too harsh. He’s young, I think he’ll get better.
“It is important to show the right behaviour towards the ball kids. They’re working so incredibly hard out there.
“It’s just, it’s a pressure cooker out there on the court, as we all know, and you’re not really yourself sometimes. So he does need to get better but I also think people need to just chill out online.”
