After "lack of fair play" accusations, Ugo Humbert explains his side of things in controversial encounter at Paris Masters vs Karen Khachanov
Amid 'lack of fair play accusations,' Ugo Humbert addressed the controversy surrounding his encounter with Karen Khachanov at the 2024 Paris Masters, three days after the incident.
Humbert squared off against Khachanov in the semifinals of the ATP 1000 event on Saturday, November 2. It was a feisty encounter with both players splitting the first two sets. Khachanov got injured halfway through the third set, with physios arriving at the scene. The Russian got back on the court after a time-out but was not able to win another game, losing the match 7-6(6), 4-6, 3-6.
Humbert's celebratory gestures when Khachanov struggled with his injury sparked the controversy. Khachanov was displeased by the Frenchman's actions and even exchanged a couple of words at the net after the match.
To clear the air surrounding the controversy, Humbert took to social media on Tuesday. The Frenchman said he thought Khachanov's injury was just a cramp and that he was disappointed by how his actions have been interpreted as a "lack of fair play."
"I wanted to say a few words following the controversy after my semi-final against Karen. After the physio's intervention, I thought it was cramp, as I was cramping myself after 2 and a half hours of intense play. I've lost other matches this year in similar circumstances and this time I remained very focused on the goal. I'm sorry to see that this has been misunderstood and even worse described as a lack of fair play," Humbert wrote on his Instagram stories.
Humbert maintained that he had nothing but respect for all his opponents and said that he had issued an apology to Khachanov.
"I have contacted him personally to apologize. I have great respect for Karen and for all the opponents I've had to meet so far. This will serve as a lesson to me to act better in the future," he added.
With his win over Khachanov, Humbert advanced to his maiden final at any Masters 1000 event. However, he failed to win the title after falling in straight sets, 2-6, 2-6, to Alexander Zverev in the summit clash.
Ugo Humbert content with "no regrets" after "beautiful week" at the Paris Masters
Ugo Humbert expressed content after how the week turned out for him at the 2024 Paris Masters. Despite the final-round defeat, the Frenchman remained positive, stating he had "no regrets."
"It was a beautiful week, despite my defeat today. My feeling is that I gave it my all, I have no regrets," Humbert said as per ATPTour.com
Humbert maintained that he was delighted but "not surprised" to have reached this far in the tournament.
"All in all, I'm glad that it paid off this week, but I'm not surprised to have reached that level," he added.
Humbert defeated Brandon Nakashima, Marcos Giron, Carlos Alcaraz, Jordan Thompson, and Karen Khachanov before losing to Zverev in the title clash.
Ugo Humbert was expected to be next in action at the Moselle Open, where he is the defending champion. However, he withdrew from the tournament after the deep run in Paris.