Heated scenes at Winston-Salem Open as Corentin Moutet asks chair umpire to default 1R opponent after he threatens to 'break his f*****g face'

Corentin Moutet was involved in a controversial moment during his first-round clash against Nicolas Mejia at the 2024 Winston-Salem Open. The Frenchman argued with the chair umpire in the first set and claimed his opponent insulted him. Moutet later revealed what Mejia allegedly said.

At the ongoing Winston-Salem Open, Moutet took on Colombian player Mejia in the first round on Monday, August 19. The Frenchman had a break point at 3-3 in the first set and Mejia missed the opportunity to capitalize on a lobbed ball by mishitting it. Moutet celebrated the break with a loud shout.

However, when he went to his bench, the 25-year-old started arguing with the chair umpire. Moutet claimed Mejia insulted him and mentioned that those are grounds for a disqualification:

"That's a default. You cannot insult the opponent," he was heard saying to the umpire.

Watch the video of his argument with the umpire below.

The umpire, however, took no action, saying he heard Mejia say something but couldn't make out what it was, and the play carried on. The set eventually went to a tiebreaker which Moutet won 7-6(5) before he convincingly won the second set 6-1 to advance.

Later, Moutet took to X (formerly Twitter) to reveal what Mejia told him and how his talk with the supervisor went.

"'I want to break his f*****g face' That’s what he (Mejia) said... Supervisor said it wasn’t for me... I guess it’s not about what you say but more about who you are," Corentin Moutet said.

Moutet moves ahead to face 17th-seed Roman Safiullin in the second round on Tuesday, August 20.

---

Corentin Moutet addresses reactions after Carlos Alcaraz smashes his racket at Cincinnati Open 2024

Carlos Alcaraz at the 2024 Cincinnati Open. (Image: Getty)

In an unusual act of frustration, Carlos Alcaraz smashed his racket on the court after he went 1-3 down in the deciding set against Gael Monfils during their second-round clash at the 2024 Cincinnati Open on August 16. The commentators, however, felt it was a sign of how 'desperately' the Spaniard wanted to win.

Corentin Moutet took to X to call out the difference he believed was there in the reaction when he committed a similar act.

"When I do it I’ve got 'mental issue' 😂," Corentin Moutet said.

Further, Australian player Nick Kyrgios responded to that and said:

"Haha what about when do it? Hahahahahaah"

The Frenchman later clarified that his remarks were in response to the commentators' statement and did not demean Alcaraz.

“I dont judge Carlos here of course He is a legend already and he behave amazing I’m making fun of how the reaction of the commentator can be different on a same gesture,” Moutet said.

Alcaraz's racket smash, however, was in vain. Monfils prevailed 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-4 as the Spaniard bowed out early on in the Masters 1000 event.