(Provided by Tennis World USA)
It was an incredible what happened during the round of 16 at the WTA 500 in Eastbourne, which represents the last grass-court preparation tournament for women before the start of Wimbledon. The match between Karolina Pliskova and Daria Kasatkina was also decided by a sensational umpire oversight, which greatly affected the Czech tennis player.
In the decisive third set, on the occasion of a very delicate point, the Russian’s forehand ended up quite clearly long but the touch judges and the umpire did not call the ball out. The former world number one, convinced that the ball hadn’t touched the baseline in any way (also indicating the sign), even stopped.
No one intervened to stop the game and, at that point, Kasatkina sent the ball to the other side of the net again with a winning forehand and earned the opportunity to break (later exploited). The 31-year-old was incredulous and at the change of court she threw her racket against the chair umpire’s position, albeit not violently, receiving a warning.
The 26-year-old defended her lead and got through to the quarterfinals of the competition. There are several enthusiasts who immediately noticed the curious situation.
