Estonia’s Mark Lajal had a frustrating outing against Titouan Droguet in the quarterfinal of the Challenger event in Saint-Tropez. His campaign came to an end after a disappointing 6-4, 7-6 defeat. But it can even be argued that Lajal was lucky to have finished the match without getting disqualified for his actions during the first set.
Lajal had an outburst while trailing 5-4, 0-40 in the first set. He handed set point to Droguet after miscueing a smash straight onto the net. After doing so, Lajal threw his racket straight towards the stands where a handful of spectators were sitting. The racket was also very close to hitting a line judge. Fortunately, no one was hurt in the incident, but Lajal was surprisingly allowed to continue playing despite his dangerous gesture.
This isn’t the type of outburst that was expected to come from Lajal. He isn’t known for smashing his racket and instead remains calm on the court. He also isn’t a player who makes headlines for his on-court actions. So, it was surprising for many to see him carelessly throw his racket in the direction of spectators.
Lajal’s day only got worse after the incident, as Droguet soon clinched the break and the first set. The second set was also a close affair and went down to the wire. After remaining level at 6-6, it was eventually settled in a tiebreaker. Though Lajal had delivered a solid performance in the set, his resilience faded in the breaker. Droguet dominated and lost just one point to clinch the breaker 7-1.
Though Lajal will be disappointed with the result, he could very well have been disqualified for his racket throw. Such actions are enough to disqualify a player, as they violate rules against unsportsmanlike conduct and equipment abuse.
Hence, the chair umpire could have defaulted Lajal, and it would have been a completely fair decision. Article III, Section T of the ITF’s Grand Slam rulebook clearly states that officials can disqualify players from a match for even a single offence.
“The Referee in consultation with the Grand Slam Supervisor may declare a default for either a single violation of this Code or pursuant to the Point Penalty Schedule set out above. In all cases of default, the decision of the Referee in consultation with the Grand Slam Supervisor shall be final and unappealable,” the rule states.
Things could have been worse for Lajal if the racket had hit the line judge or any spectator. That would have likely led to him getting defaulted on the spot and receiving other sanctions later on. A similar incident occurred earlier this year in the girls’ singles draw at Wimbledon, and the player was rightfully punished for her actions.
Ida Wobker was disqualified on the spot after her racket hit spectators at Wimbledon
A major controversy erupted during the first round of the girls’ singles draw at the 2026 Wimbledon Championships. Ida Wobker took on Maria Valentina Pop in a clash that was completely one-sided in the first set. Pop won the first set 6-0 and was clearly the better player.
The second set was much more evenly contested and was level at 5-5 when a surprising incident halted proceedings. Wobker’s frustration took over after losing a point at 30-0 in the 11th game of the set. She smashed her racket so hard that it bounced off the ground and hit spectators sitting in the first few rows.
The chair umpire immediately halted the match and went to check on the spectators. The supervisor was soon called in and informed about the whole situation. Though no spectator was seriously hurt by Wobker’s racket, she was still disqualified, and Pop was handed the win by 6-0, 5-5.
So, it’s certainly not a new thing to disqualify players on the spot if they throw a racket in the stands. The only thing that likely worked in Lajal’s favor was the fact that his racket didn’t hit anyone, or else he would have been defaulted as well.