A BBC commentator expressed his surprise after a Wimbledon competitor received a warning from the umpire for an action the commentator had “never seen before”.
Jack Pinnington Jones, aged 22, achieved the most significant victory of his career by defeating world No. 53 Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the first round.
The British player, ranked 281st globally, delivered a powerful performance on Court 17, winning 7-6, 6-3, 7-5.
However, a brief moment of tension occurred while he was trailing 4-1 in the third set.
Pinnington Jones raised concerns with the Wimbledon chair umpire, alleging that Etcheverry was deliberately delaying the match by taking excessive time after each change of ends.
This caused delays in play and frustrated Pinnington Jones.
He was heard on the courtside microphone voicing his complaint to the umpire, saying: “It`s every time now.
“Once or twice is acceptable, but not the entire match…”
Following this, the umpire promptly addressed Etcheverry, cautioning the Argentine to quicken his pace.
The umpire stated: “When I call time, you need to make a better effort.
“You are taking a bit too long. When I call `time`, get up and proceed. You cannot wait another minute.”
The BBC commentators then discussed this unusual situation.
Pundit Arvind Parmar commented: “There`s a complaint from Jack Pinnington Jones.
“He`s taking a bit too long getting out of his chair.
“That`s quite unusual.
“I haven`t really seen someone penalised for that before.
“Between points, yes, but not during the change of ends.
“Pinnington Jones is waiting at the court`s end to start the next game.”
The player from Kingston, one of seven British men to reach the second round, is scheduled to play the 22nd seed, Flavio Cobolli, next.
