Julia Putintseva booed after a confrontational moment at the US Open
Julia Putintseva endured the bitterness of defeat in the third round of the US Open. The Kazakh player lost to Jasmine Paolini 3-6, 4-6, and decided to vent her frustration on a ball girl. The crowd booed her, and a recording of the incident surfaced online.
Julia Putintseva was not the favourite to win the match against the Italians, but she had the chance to "spread her wings" earlier in the tournament. She won the match against Chinese player Xiyu Wang 6-1, 7-6(4), while Jasmine Paolini advanced to the third round due to Karolina Pliskova's retirement.
The clash was not one-sided so the fans couldn't complain about the spectacle. It had highs and lows, primarily due to the Kazakh player's inappropriate behaviour towards the ball girl.
After a few minutes of weaker play, the tennis player moved to the side of the court to receive deliveries but ignored them. The balls just bounced off her body. The audience expressed their frustration by booing and hissing at the Asian player, and the recording showing this moment spread online.
Julia Putintseva booed for her behaviour towards the ball girl
Julia Putintseva is currently ranked 32nd in the WTA rankings. In her career, she has faced Iga Świątek five times and had to acknowledge her superiority four times. She played against Jasmine Paolini for the first time and will not have fond memories of this encounter.
The first set of the match didn't go her way, as she lost her serve right from the start and then repeated it twice more - in the sixth and eighth games. She ultimately lost the first set 3-6. She started the second set better, but not enough to dominate the 73rd-ranked WTA player. She lost 4-6, and the match lasted 1 hour and 48 minutes.