Fabio Fognini suspended from U.S. Open after expletive-laced outburst
As Fabio Fognini is learning the hard way, you'd better watch what you say on the tennis court.
The Italian player has been effectively booted from the U.S. Open after an outburst directed at a female umpire, Louise Engzell, earlier this week.
Fognini, who was already known for his volatile temper, launched into an expletive-filled rant during his match against Stefano Travaglia on Wednesday. In it, he called Engzell a "whore" and a "cocksucker" in Italian, according to The Guardian. The International Tennis Federation initially fined him a total of $24,000.
The consequences became even more dire Saturday when the Grand Slam Board announced that Fognini was being provisionally suspended from the U.S. Open, while they investigated whether he'd committed a "major offense."
If the board determines that he has, Fognini could be fined up to $250,000 and permanently banned from future Grand Slams.
On Thursday, Fognini issued a public apology on social media. "It's just been a very bad day, but that does not forgive my behavior in the match," he wrote.
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This isn't the first time Fognini's unsportsmanlike behavior has cost him. In 2014, he was fined $27,500 following an argument at a Wimbledon match. Per the BBC, it was the biggest penalty in the history of the tournament.
That same year, at the Hamburg Open, Fognini referred to his opponent, Serbian player Filip Krajinovic, using an ethnic slur. He subsequently apologized for the incident on Twitter, writing, "anyone who plays sports knows that at times you get carried away saying things that make no sense."
And now, thanks to Fognini, anyone who gets carried away saying things that make no sense will know that their words on the court have consequences that follow them off the court.
