Controversial scenes in Verona, Italy, as Hugo Gaston decides to retire from the match just one point away from defeat 

Hugo Gaston made the controversial decision of retiring mid-match while being just one point away from defeat at the ongoing Internazionali di Tennis Challenger event in Verona, Italy.

Gaston, the second seed at the event, was up against Argentina's Marco Trungelliti in the first round on Tuesday. The Frenchman got off to a promising start and clinched the opening set 6-3 on the back of one crucial break of serve in the sixth game of the set.

However, Gaston performed poorly in the second set. He was broken twice by Trungelliti, and the set went 6-2 in the Argentine’s favor. In the final set, the 22-year-old was broken by Marco Trungelliti in his opening game itself. With the sole break of serve in the deciding set, the Argentine soon rushed to a 5-2 lead.

Hugo Gaston then served to stay in the match at 5-2 but found himself 0-40 down after Trungelliti earned a crucial point on a net cord return. With three match points against him, the Frenchman controversially decided to retire from the match.

Gasston was contesting the Verona Challenger event on the back of two consecutive title wins at the Trieste Challenger on July 23 and at the Iasi Challenger on July 16.

The World No. 92 featured in one other Challenger final this year, in Vina del Mar, Chile, where he was the runner-up.

Hugo Gaston rose to prominence when he challenged the then two-time French Open defending runner-up Dominic Thiem to five sets in the fourth round of the 2020 edition. In 2021, the Frenchman famously defeated Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets to reach the quarterfinals of the Paris Masters.

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"I made a mistake; I paid for it" - Hugo Gaston on his on-court cheating scandal and being handed a massive fine earlier this year

Hugo Gaston at the 2023 French Open

In May this year, Hugo Gaston was slapped with a massive €133,000 fine for engaging in unethical practices during a few of his matches.

The last straw was his 2023 Madrid Open match against Borna Coric. In the clash, the Frenchman was caught on camera pulling a second ball out of his pocket and throwing it on the court while the primary ball was still in play. The act was carried out in hopes of replaying the point.

It was later revealed that the fine, which was considerably higher than his year-to-date earnings at that point, was halved after the 22-year-old made an appeal.

Gaston addressed the issue after his French Open exit. He confessed that he was in the wrong, but maintained that his actions stemmed from frustration, and he did not view them as ‘cheating.’

"You don't always react as you should. I made a mistake. I paid for it. That's life. But it was not cheating at all. It was just 100 percent frustration," Hugo Gaston said.

The player also protested the claim that he was charged after a significant history of wrongdoings.

"I also heard that it was a repeated action, that it was a repeated action on the fact that I got a fine. But I've never done that type of thing because that's something that is not like me,” he said.