Professional tennis stars give it everything to succeed on Tour. While some players become fan favorites, others are not taken too kindly by fans on social media. However, social media has become the main platform to deliver opinions after big outcomes in the sport of tennis.

Many have become targets on social networks, which takes a toll on players who spend their whole year competing around the globe, including two French stars.

French players receive brutal messages after defeat

Two of such unfortunate players are Caroline Garcia and Benjamin Bonzi, who played at the home Grand Slam last month at Roland Garros. While Garcia made it past her opening match, Bonzi lost in the first game of his home tournament.

A message for Bonzi read, “Hello Benjamin, I hope you will cross paths.” While Caroline’s message said,  “Dirty p *** , I hope your mother abandoned you when you were born, will die.”

Le Equipe published a short excerpt with both players displaying the various insults hurled by fans. Other French stars like Alize Cornet and Gael Monfils have also been on the receiving end of such insults. In April 2022, Benoît Paire uploaded few messages on his Twitter account saying, “Please die”, “we are going to kill you.”   

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Players talking about fans abuse’

On Tour, players have admitted to losing confidence due to the reaction from fans around the world. While stars like Naomi Osaka have withdrawn from events, others like Zverev have admitted to receiving massive hate online.

US Open winner Daniil Medvedev even went on to say that fans have made it hard to stay motivated. “I am not going to explain why. The kid has stopped dreaming. From here on, I will just play for myself & to provide for my family,” he said after his maiden Grand Slam win.

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While players play at the highest level of professional sport, criticism should be kept in check on social media platforms. The confidence gained helps a player perform at his optimal best, taking the sport to new levels. The encouragement of such vile insults should be strictly prohibited and stricter measures should be taken.