Bulgarian tennis player Alexander Donski and his partner Siddhant Banthia were disqualified from an ATP Challenger event in Italy, after Donski smashed a ball into a rival player.
The incident occurred following a missed break point when Donski was beaten at the net by Simone Agostini on the other side of the net.
In a burst of frustration, Donski smashed the ball, hitting Agostini directly in the face by accident.
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Agostini clutched his face and knelt down before medical assistance was brought on court.
Donski was apologetic for the accident. X
The Bulgarian showed remorse immediately as he was clearly hitting the ball out of frustration without targeting the opponent.
But tennis rules clearly state if such an incident occurs the player in question can be disqualified.
Agostini and his partner Gianluca Cadenasso were leading 6-2, 4-4 at the time and were given clear passage to the semi-finals.
Novak Djokovic was famously disqualified from the US Open in 2020 when he struck a line judge in the throat with a ball that he’d swatted away in anger.
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