Tennis controversies of the week: Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz blasted for 'obscene' private session fees; Coco Gauff's heated altercation with chair umpire, and more

Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz charging a bomb for a practice session with them ahead of their exhibition match ruffled quite a few feathers. Coco Gauff found herself in the middle of a verbal spat with a chair umpire after a wrong call at the Dubai Tennis Championships.

The International Tennis Integrity Agency came down on James Blake and fined him for his ties with a betting company. Maria Sakkari hit back at a detractor's negative remarks, while Taylor Fritz found himself in hot waters over allegations of homophobia.

Here's a quick recap of all the major controversies of the week gone by:

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#1 - Coco Gauff irked by chair umpire's wrong call

Gauff got involved in a heated argument during her third-round clash against Karolina Pliskova at the Dubai Tennis Championships. The chair umpire didn't award the American the point after a successful challenge over a serve.

Instead, he asked the point to be replayed as he felt the out call interfered with Pliskova's shot. This didn't sit right with Gauff and despite her reasoning with the umpire, he didn't change his mind.

This happened at a crucial juncture in the match as Gauff was serving for a 5-2 lead after losing the first set. She eventually went on to win the match and stated that the umpire's action motivated her to perform even better.

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#2 - Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz's pricey private tennis session shocks fans

Rafael Nadal at the 2024 Brisbane International.

Nadal and Alcaraz's highly anticipated showdown at the "Netflix Slam" is just around the corner. The two will face off in an exhibition match on March 3 in Las Vegas at the Michelob ULTRA Arena at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.

To make the occasion extra special, the tournament organizers have even arranged a private session with the two. However, the astronomical price tag of $150,000 per person blew everyone's minds. Fans had a range of reactions to the revelation, which ranged from incredulous to ridiculous.

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#3 - James Blake fined by the ITIA for his association with betting companies

Former tennis pro James Blake was issued a $56,250 fine by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) for violating its rules. As per the rules, players, coaches, officials, and tournament organizers are barred from having any commercial ties with betting companies.

Blake, the current tournament director of the Miami Open, was found to violate the said rule. He's currently on an 18-month probation and should he break the rules once again, he'll be suspended for 18 months and fined $131,250.

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#4 - Maria Sakkari fumes over a fan page's over-the-top remark chastising her

Maria Sakkari at the 2024 Dubai Tennis Championships.

Sakkari and her compatriot Stefanos Tsitsipas have been the flagbearers of Greek tennis over the past few years. However, the two recently departed from the top 10 of the rankings on February 19 after a string of poor results.

A Greek tennis page reported on the matter and called it a "historic low" for the country. Sakkari wasn't too pleased about it and stated that such negative remarks affect the progress of tennis even more.

"A historic low for Greece in the men's and women's rankings in the last two and a half years. @steftsitsipas and @mariasakkari dropped out of the top 10 both occupying 11th place in #ATPRankings and #WTARankings respectively as of today," the comment on X read (Translated from Greek).

"Did you give this much thought before writing it? Because of this, tennis will not go forward in our country. You are laughable!" she wrote on X (Translated from Greek).

Sakkari has re-entered the top 10 of the WTA rankings this week at No. 9, while Tsitsipas slipped by a spot to No. 12.

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#5 - Taylor Fritz clears the air after landing in controversy

MMA fighter Sean Strickland recently made some homophobic comments, which put him in the spotlight. Fritz had accidentally liked a comment by a user agreeing to his views, which led to the assumption that the tennis pro backed those beliefs as well.

Fritz set the record straight after someone alerted them to what was going on. He clarified that it must've been an accidental like while scrolling and he doesn't stand for any of those beliefs.

"Holy shit I just got sent this and had a heart attack…. I DEFINITELY didn’t purposefully like this, I was looking at Stricklands profile a couple days ago cause of all the news he was in while in Vegas. I had to of accidentally liked that while scrolling the replies but wow just want to make it clear for anyone that doesn’t know me i absolutely don’t stand for any of this and if u we’re to look at my likes it’s either all gaming/tennis things I would NEVER do that on purpose," Fritz wrote on X.

Following a successful title defense at the Delray Beach Open, Fritz is currently in Acapulco for the Mexican Open. He'll take on Matteo Arnaldi in the first round on Monday evening.