"Maybe it should be Paula Badosa who provides & Stefanos Tsitsipas taking care of the house" - Fans appalled at Greek's shock Wimbledon 2R loss
Stefanos Tsitsipas' shock loss to Emil Ruusuvuori in the second round of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships has drawn strong reactions from tennis fans. Many of them also used the opportunity to poke fun at the Greek's controversial views on gender roles, especially in light of his girlfriend Paula Badosa making waves at the grasscourt Major.
Although Tsitsipas breezed past Taro Daniel 7-6(5), 6-4, 7-5 in his opening match at SW19, he failed to replicate his success against Emil Ruusuvuori in the second round. Despite holding a dominant 2-0 lead in their head-to-head record, the Greek faltered in the face of Ruusuvuori's commanding performance.
Ruusuvuori claimed a 7-6(6), 7-6(10), 3-6, 6-3 victory over the World No. 11 in two hours and 47 minutes to advance to the third round of a Major for the first time in his career.
Tennis fans were appalled at Stefanos Tsitsipas' subpar display, with several of them ridiculing the Greek for making an earlier exit than his girlfriend Paula Badosa, who is through to the third round.
Their taunts stem from the 25-year-old sparking controversy by endorsing a clip that perpetuated gender stereotypes, portraying the man as the "protector" and "provider," while the woman was relegated to "multiplying" and doing household tasks.
"Maybe it should be Badosa the one who provides and Tsitsipas the one taking care of the house," one fan commented.
"If Badosa got further than Tsitsipas in Wimbledon, is she now the breadwinner and he has to be the submissive?" another fan chimed in.
"Men and women are not the same and that is a blessing," said another.
Others, meanwhile, expressed their disappointment with Tsitsipas' performance, particularly criticizing his "horrible" backhand.
"Funny thing is Ruusuvuori was not that great in this game... it'll take a miracle for Tsitsipas to make it back into that top 10 with that awful backhand," one fan posted.
"Just go to tsitsipas backhand.. I think everyone knows this now. It's horrible!!" another fan wrote.
"His backhand was always a problem, but now everyone on tour knows it," said yet another.
One fan also pointed out that with another seeded player biting the dust in Novak Djokovic's half of the draw, the Serb had a very easy path to the final.
"The way that things are going in the bottom half, Djokovic is going to end up making the final by beating Kopriva, Fearnley, Popyrin, Halys, Fils, and Tabilo," the fan commented.
"My intentions were completely different" - Stefanos Tsitsipas defends himself against accusations of sexism and misogyny
After receiving significant backlash for sharing the controversial video, Stefanos Tsitsipas clarified his intentions in a recent interview with sdna.gr. The Greek emphasized that his endorsement of the problematic views arose from his "romantic" personality and appreciation for "beautiful" aesthetics.
"My intentions were completely different from what people saw. I am a very romantic person and I like videos and generally arts that have to do with something beautiful and impressive. I saw it from that side too," Stefanos Tsitsipas said.
The 25-year-old also contended that he didn't view the beliefs as "sexist" or "misogynistic" as they were construed, but acknowledged his mistake in sharing the "misunderstood" video.
"I didn't see it as sexist or misogynistic, as it was treated by many people. I will say that I was wrong, I shouldn't have shared something like that because it was misunderstood by many," he added.
Although Stefanos Tsitsipas' singles campaign at the 2024 Wimbledon Championships has ended, he will continue to contest the men's doubles title alongside his brother Petros.