Frances Tiafoe’s frustration boiled over in a fiery outburst directed at chair umpire Jimmy Pinoargote after his third-round defeat to Roman Safiullin at the Rolex Shanghai Masters. The American’s expletive-laden tirade stemmed from a time violation penalty he received at a crucial juncture in the final-set tiebreaker.
With the serve clock ticking down, Tiafoe tossed the ball up but let it bounce before serving. Pinoargote promptly issued a time violation, resulting in the loss of Tiafoe’s first serve. The American vehemently protested, claiming he was ready to serve, but Pinoargote remained unmoved.
Tiafoe’s frustration escalated as he lost the subsequent point at the net, handing Safiullin the advantage. The Russian ultimately closed out the match, prompting Tiafoe to unleash a torrent of profanities at Pinoargote.
“F— you, man! F— you. Seriously, f— you. You f—ed me in this f—ing match,” Tiafoe exclaimed.
Safiullin’s victory earned him a quarterfinal clash with four-time champion Novak Djokovic, who had earlier dispatched Flavio Cobolli in straight sets.
In the aftermath of his outburst, Tiafoe took to Instagram to express regret for his actions. “I really apologize for the way I acted tonight. That Is not who I am and not how I ever want to treat people,” he wrote.
“I let my frustration in the heat of the moment get the best of me and I’m extremely disappointed with how I handed the situation. That’s not acceptable behavior and I want to apologize to the umpire, the tournament and the fans. I’ll be better for y’all.”
The ATP has yet to announce whether Tiafoe will face any disciplinary action for his outburst.
