French Tennis Player Benoit Paire Spits on Court, Argues with Umpire During Argentina Open
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Marcelo Endelli/Getty Benoit Paire
French tennis player Benoit Paire exited the Argentina Open this week after spitting on the court twice during a match.
While facing off against Francisco Cerundolo on Wednesday, Paire, 31, got heated during the second set, after a line call went against him. Although the chair umpire determined that Cerundolo had served an ace, Paire argued with the umpire, going over to point out the mark by the line that he believed proved his point.
After it was determined that the call would stand, the athlete spat on the mark and cursed at the umpire, which earned him an official warning.
Before losing the second set, Paire spat on the court for a second time, and was docked a point for a code of conduct violation.
❌ Así no, Benoit 🇫🇷
Tras una discusión con el umpire por un pique, el francés escupió en el lugar de la polémica 😡 pic.twitter.com/Qm6SVNGRlo— Argentina Open (@ArgentinaOpen) March 4, 2021
While closing out the match, Paire seemingly gave up, serving two double faults in a row, one of which took place while the ball boy was still on the court from the previous serve.
He went on to lose 4-6 6-3 6-1, with Cerundolo advancing to the quarterfinals.
Marcelo Endelli/Getty Benoit Paire
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Following the match, Paire appeared to address his performance on social media.
Alongside a screenshot that showed his $8.5 million career winnings, the athlete wrote, "In the end it's worth it to suck."
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Paire exhibited rule-breaking behavior before in 2018 when he smashed three rackets on court following his Citi Open defeat.
He was fined $16,500 for the outburst, according to USA Today.
