Two-time Roland Garros finalist Dominic Thiem had an unsuccessful start at the tournament in 2023, losing in the first round to Argentine Pedro Cachin. Four years ago, the Austrian performed much more successfully at the French Open, but this did not stop the organizers from putting the tennis player out the door.

This was done in order to Serena Williams was comfortable.

“Federer wouldn’t do that”

In 2019, Australian tennis player Ashleigh Barty celebrated the victory in the women’s singles at Roland Garros. But for the titled American Serena Williams, the French Open was extremely unsuccessful. Already in the third round, she lost to another representative of the United States – Sofia Kenin. Perhaps the four-time Olympic champion was not in the best mood, but this did not mean at all that for the sake of her comfort it was necessary to urgently put other participants in the tournament in an uncomfortable position.

Austrian Dominic Thiem won his match of the third round, forcing Uruguayan Pablo Cuevas to capitulate. After a difficult battle on the court, the tennis player, who was considered one of the favorites of the tournament, spoke to the press in the main hall of the press center. He has already switched from English to German, and it may have seemed to some of the organizers that the athlete would not say anything important to his native press. At least at this moment, the future finalist of Roland Garros 2019 was asked to vacate the premises and move to another hall, since Serena Williams was waiting in the main hall.

– I really do not understand. What the heck? This is some kind of nonsense. Should I leave because she can’t wait? Tim was outraged.

Dominic Thiem / Photo: © Guenther Iby / Contributor / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

But the Austrian did not become too persistent and the main hall for the younger Williams was freed. However, he also did not want to continue communicating with journalists, and only the next day he told the press everything that he thought about in those unpleasant moments for himself.

“I was angry for a maximum of two minutes. It’s just a matter of principle. It doesn’t matter if I was there or someone else. I myself was wrong in saying that I am not a junior to be kicked out. Even if there was a junior, you had to wait until he finished. This is a common order for all, and the one who violates it shows his bad character. I am one hundred percent sure that Federer or Nadal would not have done this, ”Eurosport quoted the Austrian tennis player.

“Fear factor”

The resulting scandal divided tennis fans into two camps. Some sided with Tim and sharply criticized the organizers, and at the same time Serena Williams for openly disrespecting one of the participants in the tournament. Others thought that nothing terrible had happened, and even attacked Dominic, who dared to rebel.

Roger Federer, mentioned by the Austrian, confirmed that he really would have let the victorious opponent into the press conference first, but clearly did not want to take the side of his colleague. But the ex-first racket of Great Britain Annabelle Croft unequivocally expressed her position.

– Played the factor of fear. The organizers were afraid that Serena might leave the arena and the world media would not receive the desired quotes. The question is who is to blame. In relation to the person who continues to fight in the tournament, an incredible disrespect was shown. Williams should have been delayed five minutes so that Tim could finish the press conference. If it were the other way around, there would be incredible hype. I think it’s just terrible. Dominic needs an apology,” Croft said.

People far from tennis, such as political observers, actresses and other well-known lawyers, decided that Tim should not be outraged here, since he is still nobody, and Serena is the queen. It’s funny that even Federer got it, who, instead of sharply condemning Dominic, tried to remain neutral.

“Listen, boy, no one knows you. You may be a big figure in the tennis world, but the fact that Serena has been eliminated so early is a big deal. People want to know what happened and how she feels. I don’t think she would ever want to talk to anyone about her defeat. Don’t blame her! Stop being dumb,” American actress Whoopi Goldberg shared her thoughts with the Daily Express.

Serena Williams / Photo: © Hannah Peters / Staff / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

“Serena put pressure on the commission”

What really happened at the doors of the main press conference hall is still not known for certain. World tennis legend John McEnroe assured that Serena herself did not demand that she be allowed to communicate with journalists instead of Tim. The American seemed to be willing to talk to the press in any of the proposed premises, and when she found out that the organizers had put Dominic out the door, she said that it was rude. However, journalist Ben Rothenberg, a witness to the events, described the incident differently.

— The second room was not free. Yes, the monitor showed an empty table, since Karen Khachanov was giving an interview standing there. As for her words, she meant that she was treated rudely, making her wait, and did not sympathize with Tim. I was there. She put pressure on the ITF commission and made it clear that she did not want to wait,” Rotenberg wrote on social networks.

It’s even scary to imagine what they could do with the Austrian if, because of him, Williams had to hastily turn off the press conference. And Dominic could only put up with injustice and not even dream of some kind of public apology from the American. However, all this did not prevent the tennis player from reaching the final of the tournament, where he lost to Rafael Nadal in four sets.