Karen Khachanov and Caroline Garcia were furious about the way some fans treated them after their losses at the 2024 US Open.
Tennis players compete every week, aiming to climb the ATP or WTA rankings and win big titles. But they also have personal lives beyond the court.
These lives include hobbies, family time, and moments away from tennis. Many fans struggle to respect this separation between public and private life .
Fan abuse has been a part of tennis for decades. With online gambling becoming more popular, it’s only gotten worse because people lose money on bets.
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Player Reactions:
Caroline Garcia had a rough tournament, losing in the first round to Renata Zarazua with scores of 1-6, 4-6. It wasn’t just the loss that upset her; it was the hateful messages she received afterward that led her to speak out on social media.
“These are some of the messages I received lately after loosing some matches. Just a few of them. There’s hundreds. And now, being 30 years old, although they still hurt, because at the end of the day, I’m just a normal girl working really hard and trying my best, I have tools and have done work to protect myself from this hate. But still, this is not ok.”
“It really worries me when I think about younger players coming up that have to go through this. People that still haven’t yet developed fully as a human and that really might be affected by this hate. Maybe you can think that it doesn’t hurt us. But it does. We are humans.”
Garcia also called out those in charge who could help remove such comments and pointed fingers at betting companies sponsoring tournaments as part of the problem.
“Many before me have raised the subject. And still, no progress has been made… The days of cigarette brands sponsoring sports are long gone… Don’t get me wrong; I’m not saying they should be banned as people are free to do whatever they want with their money.”
Fans might feel sad hearing how much these messages affect their favorite players.
She highlighted legal issues too: online words aren’t treated like spoken ones but should be reconsidered for anonymity’s sake.
“Also if someone decided to say these things in public… Shouldn’t we reconsider anonymity online?… maybe you will remember that she or he is also a human being…”
Similarly disheartened was Karen Khachanov after his first-round exit against Daniel Evans in an epic match lasting five hours and 36 minutes with scores: 7-6(6), 6-7(2), 6-7(4), 6-4, 4-6.
Khachanov found inappropriate messages too but chose not to stay silent:
“Yesterday I had one of the longest toughest emotional matches in my career…I woke up today feeling beaten up with a bat…”
“I am extremely devastated…but want everyone reminded such losses hit athletes hard too—not just bettors losing money but us missing prize steps-up or trophies.”
“But I want stress painful losses like this difficult cope mentally…Please respectful don’t strike man down…”
What do you think? Should there be stricter rules against online abuse?
