Sloane Stephens recently commented on Frances Tiafoe’s opponent, Lorenzo Musetti, not being penalized after the controversial incident involving a line judge at the 2025 French Open.
During the quarterfinal match at the clay-court Major, while Musetti was trailing Tiafoe 3-5 in the second set, he received some balls from a ball kid. In a moment of frustration, he accidentally struck a line judge while returning one of the balls. Following this incident, Musetti received a warning but was not disqualified and was allowed to continue playing.
Sloane Stephens Weighs In on Frances Tiafoe’s Opponent Lorenzo Musetti Not Being Defaulted After Incident With French Open Line Judge
While speaking about the incident following the conclusion of the quarterfinal match between Tiafoe and Musetti, which the Italian won, Stephens referred to the incident as ‘dumb.’ She also acknowledged that Musetti did not intend to hit the line judge and that the act was not malicious.
“In this case, obviously, no one wants to be defaulted in the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam. That’s just insane. I don’t think that it was on purpose. I don’t think it was malicious. That was just dumb,” Stephens said.
The former US Open champion also mentioned that players have historically expressed their frustrations on the court, but this behavior seems to have increased over the past couple of years.
“I would say, I do think that it’s all happened to one of us, where we hit a ball, did something stupid, and almost hit someone or almost whatever. But I do think in tennis, the last couple of years it has gotten out of control. So, I don’t know if that’s defaulting everyone,” she continued.
Stephens also stated that the lack of significant consequences for Musetti sends the wrong message to other players.
“I don’t know if that’s giving him a fine after the tournament, that’s 25 Grand, so he doesn’t do it again. I don’t know what that is, but there does need to be some sort of consequence when these things are happening, because I think it just continues to happen, and nothing is happening. And I think the no-call today was just another reminder that you’re not going to get in trouble, which I don’t think is the right message to send,” Stephens added.
What Did Frances Tiafoe Say About Lorenzo Musetti Not Being Defaulted?
During the post-match press conference following his loss to Musetti in the quarterfinals of the 2025 French Open, Tiafoe shared his thoughts on the incident involving the Italian and the line judge.
Tiafoe expressed his frustration over the lack of consequences for Musetti, describing the situation as “comical” and “inconsistent.”
“Yeah, I mean, obviously he did that and nothing happened. I think that’s comical, but it is what it is. Nothing happened, so there’s nothing really to talk about. Obviously, it’s not consistent, so it is what it is,” Frances Tiafoe said.
Looking ahead, Musetti is scheduled to face second seed Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals of the 2025 French Open.
