"Disappointing first year for Amelie Mauresmo as French Open director" - Journalists, fans react to a chaotic day 13 at the French Open
Tournament director Amelie Mauresmo had her hands full on Day 13 of the French Open, which was filled with high-quality tennis and unfortunate endings. The day was filled with high-octane drama and a lot to reflect on for Mauresmo, who has been under heavy scrutiny for a variety of reasons.
The semifinalists in the men's singles draw battled it out for a chance to fight for the 2022 French Open crown. While Alexander Zverev unfortunately rolled his ankle and was forced to retire against Rafael Nadal, Casper Ruud and Marin Cilic's match saw a climate change protestor run towards the court and tie herself up at the net. This halted the match for more than 15 minutes, affecting the momentum of both players.
Fans and media personalities reacted to the lapse in security and poor management after all the chaos had died down.
Christopher Clarey provided an overview of Mauresmo's first year as the tournament director and highlighted some of the missteps made through the fortnight.
Disappointing 1st year for Amelie Mauresmo as French Open tournament director. Missteps on scheduling. Comments on women's #tennis (since walked back). Drastically curtailing access for reporters to players & teams that will create bigger divide & hurts coverage.
Bring on 2023!
Sporting News Australia gave their take on all the action.
bit.ly/3NkEeTZ
It was an eventful day at the French Open, with the men's singles finalists now locked in.
DAY 13 WRAP 👉 bit.ly/3NkEeTZ
#RolandGarros https://t.co/bkAk3ntZF2
First serve tennis added to the climate change protestor's hijacked the court and tied herself to the net after an already hectic day at the French Open.
As if today couldn’t get any wilder, a protester has stormed the court and tied herself to the net. Been escorted off now so hopefully play to resume soon… Not entirely sure, but me be something to do with climate change.
#RolandGarros twitter.com/doublefault28/…
#RolandGarros
An environmental activist wearing a T-shirt with the message “We have 1028 days left” interrupted the French Open men’s semifinal by attaching herself to the net with metal wires and glue and kneeling on the court.
indianexpress.com/article/sports…
Reginaldo Rosario summarised the eventful day at the French Open in a tweet.
Been a really weird day at Roland Garros.
Zverev retiring injured in the middle of a epic battle with Nadal and now someone's invaded the court and tied themselves to the net in the other semi-final between Ruud and Cilic
#RolandGarros
Fans reflected on the 2022 French Open and compared it to other Grand Slams
We thought Australian Open was controversial.
We thought Wimbledon was already being controversial.
But this #RolandGarros is for sure a Drama Slam. https://t.co/1mwOdMUYig
Roland Garros 2022 has not been without drama!
One fan wasn't happy with the way the tournament has been organised.
Her first year has been a mess https://t.co/99zuNhrqPd
"I think the people who know me, know that I’m a big fighter for equal rights and women’s tennis" - Amelie Mauresmo
Tournament director Amelie Mauresmo has copped a lot of criticism of late after her controversial claim that men’s matches have more “appeal" than women's. Nine out of the 10 matches scheduled for the night session have been men’s matches and Mauresmo's response saw her receive substantial criticism.
She later clarified her statement, saying that things were taken out of context before apologizing to the players and saying she's a fighter for equal rights.
"First of all, the comments that I made were taken out of the wider picture, out of the context,” former Grand Slam champion Mauresmo told Tennis Channel on Thursday. "And I want to say sorry to the players that really felt bad about what I said. Again, I think the people who know me, know that I’m a big fighter for equal rights and women’s tennis, women in general.”
The Roland Garros women's final will be contested between Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff on Saturday, while Rafael Nadal and Casper Ruud will face off in the French Open men's final on Sunday.