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Alexander Zverev was left fuming after a contentious electronic line call at the 2025 Madrid Open. He engaged in a heated argument with chair umpire Mohamed Lahyani, begging him to leave his seat to assess the mark.
Zverev is competing at the Masters 1000 event in the Spanish capital as the top seed. On Sunday, April 27, he faced an in-form Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the third round. He had a slow start in the contest, losing the opening set 2-6 after a 0-4 deficit.
Despite the setback, the German continued to challenge his opponent in the following set. After exchanging breaks in the first two games, Davidovich Fokina produced crucial breakpoint opportunities at 4-4. However, Zverev saved the game on a big serve, which his opponent contested was out.
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After making his dissatisfaction known to the chair umpire about the questionable call, the Spaniard proceeded to change sides and shifted his focus to his next service game at 5-4. Controversy ensued almost immediately as Alejandro Davidovich Fokina was awarded the first point of the game on a sliced backhand shot, which Alexander Zverev argued was considerably wide.
Furious with the seeming back-to-back errors, Zverev approached chair umpire Lahyani, claiming that the electronic line-calling machine was malfunctioning.
"The machine is not working. Look at this mark, please," the World No. 2 said.
He repeatedly begged the chair umpire to check the mark, but Lahyani refused to leave the seat.
"Just come down and look at it. No, no, no no. Don’t overrule it, please come just come down please, just for me. Just for me, please, look at this, please, I’m begging you. Just look at this," he continued.
"The system gave it good. I cannot check it, Alexander. When the system calls it good, I cannot go down," Mohamed Lahyani said.
In response, Alexander Zverev said:
"Okay, but there is a mistake in the system because this ball is like ‘this’ out."
After a heated back-and-forth, the player proceeded to pull out his mobile phone and rushed to click a picture of the mark on the red dirt, despite the umpire requesting him not to.
Watch the video here:
Zverev was promptly slapped with a code violation warning for unsportsmanlike conduct. It is not the first time in recent weeks that a tennis player has pulled out their electronic device to save the proof of a contentious line call.
At the WTA 500 event in Stuttgart, finalist Aryna Sabalenka engaged in a similar behavior after being declined a second look. Meanwhile, Victoria Azarenka, too, was unhappy with the electronic system at the Madrid Open.
Alexander Zverev survives Alejandro Davidovic Fokina's Madrid Open scare
After losing the opening set 6-2 at the Madrid Open, Alexander Zverev produced a resilient display in the next two sets. Both the second and the third sets culminated in tiebreaks, with the top seed edging out Alejandro Davidovich Fokina with a 2-6, 7-6(3), 7-6(0) scoreline.
The German is chasing his third title at the tournament and his eighth at the Masters 1000 level. He faces either Francisco Cerundolo or Francisco Comesana for a place in the quarterfinals on Tuesday, April 29.
