It has almost been a tale of two cities for Rafael Jodar this season. While the Spaniard has announced himself remarkably on the Tour, controversy over his on-court conduct has drawn scrutiny. Even though his incidents with the ball kids at the French Open and Wimbledon have still been defended by some, his actions at the Shanghai Masters drew a massive wave of criticism against the 20-year-old, and Coco Gauff’s former coach, Brad Gilbert, has given his opinion.
“One thing that is inexcusable, if you’ve ever been a ball kid and know that like some of these kids are nervous doing it, you can never lose it on a ball kid,” said Gilbert on the Big T podcast. “I feel like losing it on a ball kid should be less than losing it on an umpire. And I I okay, you don’t exactly know what the exact ramifications what happened in Paris. The one where he literally snapped about not getting his towel and swearing at a ball kid to me is inexcusable.”
Gilbert’s opinions have clearly drawn a line in the sand regarding Jodar’s on-court incidents with ball kids. The incident occurred during the Spaniard’s match against Botic Van de Zandschulp at the Shanghai Masters, when the World No. 11 snapped at the ball kid who seemed to take some time to bring out the towel. The language Jodar was heard using towards a young kid was quite offensive and was understandably sanctioned by the chair umpire, who imposed a code violation for unsportsmanlike conduct.
The Shanghai incident for Jodar was preceded by other incidents during the Tour’s clay and grass court seasons. Back at the French Open, there was a lot of backlash against the Spaniard for seemingly pushing a ball kid out of his way, but subsequent camera angles exonerated him. At Wimbledon, fans were not impressed when the Spaniard did not show any signs of gratitude towards a ball kid who had picked up his racket after he had fallen during a rally.
Jodar did issue a profuse apology after the Shanghai incident, where the Spaniard talked about “being human”, which is true for even veteran players, let alone for a young player who is learning the ropes in his first full year on the Tour. He is not alone in making a name for himself by throwing temper tantrums on the court; Daniil Medvedev and Corentin Moutet are infamous for on-court meltdowns, and the Russian is often seen having verbal altercations with the chair umpires.
While Jodar has received his fair share of criticism from fans and the likes of Gilbert, the Spanish youngster has also received some support. None more so than from the president of the Spanish Tennis Federation, Miguel Diaz Roman, who gave his glowing endorsement of Jodar and assured of the 20-year-old’s character from an early age.
Jodar’s on-court behavior might have divided public opinion, but the Spaniard’s performances have led everyone to agree on his potential, putting him on the verge of qualifying for the ATP Finals.
Rafael Jodar on the Verge of Qualifying for the ATP Finals
Having played only Challenger tennis last year and ranked outside the top 100, Jodar’s current position as World No. 11 represents a giant step in men’s tennis. With 3159 points for the season, the Spaniard is ninth on the Race Rankings and is one of the prime candidates to book his ticket for Turin.
Jodar’s season was built around clay-court success, with the Spaniard’s only title coming on the surface in Marrakech, while he also reached the quarterfinals in Madrid, Rome, and at the French Open. He was able to carry over his success on hard courts in the second half of the season, during which he reached the final in Washington and the semifinals in Montreal.
After a brief blip at the US Open, Jodar was back at it in Shanghai, where the Spaniard reached his maiden Masters 1000 final. Even though he fell short against his compatriot, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Jodar’s run saw him come back from being a set down in four consecutive matches during the event, which included wins over the likes of Casper Ruud and Daniil Medvedev, players who have reached Grand Slam finals on hard courts in their careers.