A heated on-court dispute between two tennis players has now extended to social media platforms.
Maria Sakkari defeated Yulia Putintseva with a score of 7-5, 7-6 in the opening round of the Bad Homburg Open tournament in Germany yesterday.
Credit: Sky Sports
Credit: Sky Sports
Tensions rose significantly during the customary post-match handshake, as both players reportedly traded insults.
According to reports, Sakkari told Putintseva to “act like a human being” and added, “nobody likes you.”
Sakkari also criticized Putintseva for not making eye contact during the handshake.
Putintseva`s response included a sarcastic curtsy towards Sakkari, and she was also reported to have used strong language.
The player from Kazakhstan subsequently took to social media to address the ongoing disagreement.
On Instagram, she wrote: “By the way – not that I care – I shook her hand as most women do. Clearly not according to the `hugging protocol` some men seem to follow.”
She further fueled the situation by re-sharing images from previous matches showing Sakkari not looking at her opponents, including Martina Trevisan and Emma Raducanu, during handshakes.
Credit: @yulia_putintseva
Credit: @yulia_putintseva
Putintseva captioned these shared images with the suggestive phrase “and the plot thickens,” accompanied by a clown emoji.
When questioned about the incident in a post-match interview, Sakkari commented: “I don`t think she`s going to invite me for dinner for the rest of our lives. But I don`t care to be honest. I have very good friends.”
Sakkari, a former world number 3, reached the semi-finals of both the French Open and US Open in 2021.
Putintseva is known for her fiery demeanor on court and has been involved in past controversies, including a notable incident involving a ball girl at a major tournament in 2024.
Credit: Sky Sports
