It’s been a tough start to the season for the 24-year-old. The losses began at the Brisbane International, then continued through Adelaide, the Australian Open, the Dallas Open, and the Delray Beach Open. Now, his Mexican Open campaign has also come to a close. In the quarterfinals, he fell to his 26-year-old opponent in France, and in a twist of irony, it was a defeat that didn’t unfold in the usual way.

In Acapulco, Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanović took on Frenchman Terence Atmane in the quarterfinals of the Mexican Open. Kecmanović secured a 6-3, 6-3 victory to book his place in the semifinals. But the way the match ended left many surprised.

“Something you don’t see every day 🤔 Kecmanovic’s 6-3 6-3 win over Atmane ends with a time violation,” Tennis TV wrote on X just hours later, sharing a clip of the final moments.

For anyone who didn’t catch the match, the ending came down to a time violation. Terence Atmane was penalized for taking too long between points, and that penalty cost him match point, ending the contest on the spot.

Under ATP rules, players have 25 seconds to be ready for the next point. If they exceed that limit, the chair umpire can issue a violation, which may result in the loss of a point. In this case, that single call decided everything.

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According to the official ATP Rulebook, the receiver gets a warning the first time. If it happens again, they lose the point. For the server, a time violation means losing their first serve. In Terence Atmane’s situation, as Miomir Kecmanović stood ready to serve, the Frenchman was still walking toward the ball boy to grab his towel. That’s when the chair umpire, Scotty Moore, called the violation, and with it, the match was over.

The sudden ending sparked loud boos throughout the stadium at Arena GNP Seguros, leaving fans stunned as the match concluded without another ball being played.

It’s also worth noting that Atmane had already been warned earlier for the same issue. He was reportedly dealing with an illness and had even taken a medical timeout during the match. Still, the rule was enforced, and the penalty stood.

With that, world No. 84 Miomir Kecmanović, who turned pro in 2017, moved on to the semifinals. Up next, he’ll face fifth-seeded Flavio Cobolli in their second ATP Tour meeting, with the Serb having won their only previous clash at the 2022 Napoli Open in the first round.

Looking back, Kecmanović’s rise has had its milestones. In 2019, he earned his first Top 10 win by defeating then-sixth-ranked Alexander Zverev at the Cincinnati Open. Now, six and a half years later, he has secured his first Top 5 victory, another significant step forward in his career.

However, for Terence Atmane, this wasn’t the first time he had run into trouble with a rules violation and narrowly avoided facing the consequences.

Terence Atmane criticized for unsportsmanlike conduct

Back in 2024, Terence Atmane found himself at the center of controversy during his opening-round match at the French Open. Playing in front of his home crowd, he stormed to a two-set lead. But the momentum shifted quickly. He dropped the third set and then fell behind by a double break in the fourth against Austria’s Sebastian Ofner.

At 4-1 down, the then 22-year-old missed a backhand long. Frustrated, he struck the ball again as it came back to him, firing it into the stands at the far end of the court. The ball hit a female fan, and the stadium fell into stunned silence. The match referee immediately went over to check on her condition.

Atmane briefly approached the net to speak with the umpire before returning to the baseline to wait. After a 15-minute delay, he was issued a warning for unsportsmanlike conduct, but that was the extent of the punishment. There was no disqualification. Play resumed, and Ofner completed an impressive comeback, winning 3-6, 4-6, 7-6, 6-2, 7-5 to move into the second round.

Afterward, Ofner admitted he was surprised by the decision. “For me, it was a bit surprising, because if you do something like that on a small court, you have to be punished, you know?” he said.

Fast forward to today’s match, and Terence Atmane once again appeared to be struggling physically. He frequently reached for his towel between points and told the chair umpire at 1-1 in the second set that he had been throwing up all night.

“I’m sweating like crazy. Like relax, give me five seconds okay?” he said after being urged to speed things up. Later, as Kecmanović prepared for his semifinal, Atmane called for treatment at the end of the third game, telling the on-site doctor he had been shaking and feeling hot and cold during his first ATP 500 quarterfinal appearance.

So, should Terence Atmane’s reported illness have been taken more into consideration before issuing the decisive penalty? What do you think?