Draper wins after ‘most controversial match point ever’

Jack Draper’s run to a second ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final at the Cincinnati Open has been completely overshadowed by one of the most controversial finishes to a match in recent memory during his third-round encounter with Felix Auger-Aliassime.
The British No1 dug deep again to come through a third consecutive three-set match, fighting back from a set down to beat the world No19 from Canada 5-7, 6-4, 6-4. Having reached the same stage of last year’s Canadian Open, this win means that the 22-year-old has become the second British player since Andy Murray to reach multiple Masters quarter-finals before turning 23.
This, however, is not what the match will be remembered for. The ATP’s lack of video review technology was shown up by a highly contentious match point in which Draper played a half-volley — a shot that is hit immediately after the ball bounces — that appeared to illegally hit the court surface and bounce high into the air before clipping the net cord on its way over.
The umpire, Greg Allensworth, who had a close view of the shot from his high courtside chair, ruled instantly that this was a legal shot and called the match for Draper. While Auger-Aliassime looked towards Allensworth with a bemused smile, television replays confirmed that the ball had come off the court after contact had been made with the racket.
Draper immediately offered to play the point again should television evidence confirm that it had been a foul shot. “If there was a [TV] replay, I would replay it but I don’t know,” he said.
Auger-Aliassime approached the net and calmly suggested that Draper would have already been aware that it had hit the court through the feel and trajectory of the ball. “Jack, you know,” he said, before turning his ire in the direction of Allensworth.
“That’s horrendous, what you just did. Did you not see the ball bounce on the floor? He shanked it on the floor. What do you mean?”
Allensworth replied: “I did not see that. I saw it come up off the [racket] frame and then over [the net].”
Auger-Aliassime then pointed out to Allensworth that footage of the incident would quickly become a controversial topic on social media, which inevitably proved to be the case.
“You’re going to get out now, it’s going to be everywhere and it’s going to look ridiculous,” Auger-Aliassime said. “I’m serious. It’s going to be crazy. I know it’s not his [Draper’s] place to make that call, it’s match point for him. It’s the win for him, but it’s your place to make that call.”
There was still a hint of frustration on Auger-Aliassime’s part that Draper had not realised the ball had come off the racket into the court. Draper insisted that he was looking at Auger-Aliassime while playing the shot.
“It doesn’t matter where you were looking,” Auger-Aliassime said. “You’ve played enough that when you hit it, you know where it went.”
As the debate continued, the crowd chanted, “Replay”. ATP rules do not yet permit the use of VAR-style technology despite trials taking place at a select number of tournaments over the past five years. The officiating supervisor could also offer no input because he believed his view from behind the court was not definitive.
“This is why I asked about the replay,” Draper said. “I might look like an idiot now because people say I’m not being fair but I was looking at him.
“If you [the officials] were to tell me that it hit the floor, I’d play the point again. But I don’t know. Felix, if he [the supervisor] says right now that the ball hit the ground and he saw it on the TV, I would play the point again.”
Reluctant to accept the call, Auger-Aliassime asked Allensworth to confirm one last time that he did “not have one ounce of doubt” in his ruling. “I just have to call it how I saw it, Felix,” Allensworth replied. “If I had a doubt, I would tell you. Listen, we can go back and look at it after the match. And if I saw it wrong, I’ll admit to you. But for now I can’t go back and look at it.”
Auger-Aliassime and Draper then shook hands, to boos from some spectators. The social media furore started quickly, with the ATP’s official streaming service billing a clip of the incident as “THE MOST CONTROVERSIAL MATCH POINT EVER!!!” The Australian player Nick Kyrgios was among those to reply.
“Horrible call,” Kyrgios wrote. “But every player knows you know exactly where you hit it, hahaha. Ridiculous stuff.”
It has intensified calls for video reviews to be made available across the tour. The ATP has made electronic line-calling mandatory at all regular events from next year, but has stopped short of doing the same for reviews. Thankfully, this year’s US Open will have VAR-style technology available on eight of its main match courts.
“Video challenge system please,” Darren Cahill, the coach of the men’s world No1 Jannik Sinner, wrote on social media. “We have it. Use it.”
Cahill also added in a reply: “It’s not the fault of Jack or the umpire. That was nearly impossible to pick up. We were debating and unsure even from the back of court slo-mo replay, but the side view camera picked it up clearly.”
Draper, who moves to a projected career-high world ranking of No24 after this win, will now have to avoid becoming distracted by the fallout before one of the biggest matches of his career at about 2am UK time on Sunday. He plays Holger Rune, the world No16 from Denmark, with the chance to reach a Masters semi-final for the first time.