5 tennis players who were disqualified the most during matches in the Open Era ft. Andre Agassi and John McEnroe
It's only natural for players to feel frustrated when things aren't going their way during a match. However, they cross the line at times with their antics, leading to a default.
A player getting disqualified by a chair umpire after receiving four code violation warnings is known as a default in tennis. One-time offenders include Novak Djokovic, Nick Kyrgios, and Denis Shapovalov, among others. The Serb accidentally hit a linesperson in the throat with a ball during the 2020 US Open, leading to immediate disqualification.
However, there are quite a few players famous for their temper tantrums, which led to them losing a match due to default multiple times. Here's a look at five such players:
#5 David Nalbandian
David Nalbandian's emotions often got the better of him and it led to him being defaulted twice. The first incident took place at the start of his career when he was thrown out of a tournament in Chile in 2002. The Argentine went off the rails and went on an abusive tirade against a linesperson, leading to his disqualification.
10 years later, Nalbandian was in the midst of yet another regrettable incident. Competing against Maric Cilic in the final of the Queen's Club Championships, he won the first set but got broken to trail 4-3 in the second. He wasn't too pleased about this and kicked an advertising board in anger, which smashed into pieces and hurt a linesperson who was nearby.
Nalbandian's actions left the linesperson bloodied and after seeing the extent of the injury, he was sent packing by the chair umpire.
#4 Jimmy Connors
Jimmy Connors' first default in 1976 can be brushed aside as it was also related to an injury. His second infraction of this kind took place in 1986. His semifinal showdown against Ivan Lendl in Boca Raton went down to the wire as the contest entered the fifth set. The American made his ire known to the chair umpire over a wrong line call.
Connors demanded to see the supervisors but was told he had no recourse in this matter. He was penalized a point and then a game, but refused to play further. The umpire urged him to continue the match, but the American didn't budge and was eventually defaulted as the allotted time for the resumption of play expired.
#3 John McEnroe
John McEnroe was famous for his brash on-court persona back in the day. In the final of the 1987 World Team Cup, he faced Miloslav Mecir in a singles tie. The American had plenty to say about the umpire's ruling towards the end of the match, before walking away abruptly.
McEnroe later stated that he did so because of an injury, but that didn't stop the officials from imposing hefty fines. His second incident was even more memorable, for all the wrong reasons. The American was booted from the 1990 Australian Open during his fourth-round match.
McEnroe was warned after intimidating a female linesperson, then docked a point for smashing his racquet. He later swore at the supervisor and the umpire, which only added to his earlier list of offenses, leading to his immediate exit.
#2 Andre Agassi
Andre Agassi was a colorful character throughout his career. Not one to shy away from expressing his emotions on the court, he was disqualified from tournaments twice. The first time it happened was at the 1996 RCA Championships.
After winning the first set against Daniel Nestor, Agassi trailed 3-2 in the second. He then hit a ball into the stands in anger, for which he received a ball abuse warning. The American further lost his cool and swore at the umpire, who then called the supervisor. Following a brief chat with the supervisor, he was immediately disqualified.
At the 1999 Sybase Open, Agassi won the first set against Cecil Mamitt rather comfortably but trailed in the second set tie-break. However, after uttering a series of profanities, he was kicked out of the tournament. He stated that he was in fact muttering to himself, but the officials felt as if it was directed towards the linesperson, leading to his exit.
#1 Ilie Nastase
Ilie Nastase's on-court behavior led to him being nicknamed "Nasty," so it's no surprise to see him atop this list. He was defaulted from tournaments on five separate occasions. The first incident occurred at the 1974 US Clay Court Championships when the Romanian was disqualified in the quarterfinals against Raul Ramirez.
The next time it happened was in 1975, during the round-robin stage of the year-end championships. Arthur Ashe led 4-1 in the third set and stormed off the court due to Nastase's stalling tactic, which he knew was against the rules. There was a fair bit of controversy in picking the winner of the match, but ultimately the records show the American as the victor.
Nastase's behavior led to him being disqualified twice in 1976, first during an event in Philadelphia and later in Palm Springs. In the latter tournament, he once again utilized stalling tactics and unsportsmanlike conduct during his third-round win over Dick Stockton. Up against Roscoe Tanner in the quarterfinals, the Romanian's antics continued, leading to him being defaulted in the middle of the second set.
Over the next few years, Nastase's antics came close to getting him booted during matches, but he always managed to toe the line. The next time he found himself in hot water was at the 1980 WCT Invitational against Vijay Amritraj, when the officials disqualified him early on in the third set.