- Yulia Putintseva ignored the ball girl’s attempts to throw the ball to her.
- The crowd booed her loudly for her actions during her third round loss.
- The Kazakhstan player has since taken to social media to apologize to the girl.
Boris Becker has criticised a US Open player for her “terrible behaviour” towards a ball girl.
Yulia Putintseva’s frustration was evident during her US Open third-round loss to Jasmine Paolini.
The Kazakh player was losing the first set and trailing 4-2 in the second, and there was an unpleasant moment when a ball girl tried to throw balls at her before she took her serve.
Putintseva stared at the ball girl with her arms at her sides, making no effort to catch the balls and instead just watching them as they rolled away from her feet.
The 29-year-old has since taken to social media to apologize for her actions, which were met with boos from the crowd at Flushing Meadows.
Yulia Putintseva ignored the ball girl’s attempts to throw balls at her, letting the first one hit her torso (left) while the second one bounced off her feet and rolled away (right).
Putintseva did not recognise the ball girl when she caught the third ball, as the young woman spread her arms out almost in disbelief at what had just happened.
Putintseva, 29, was later criticised for her “terrible behaviour” towards the ball girl.
Former US Open champion Boris Becker criticised Putintseva’s behaviour on social media
Putintseva has since taken to social media to apologize for her actions, saying she was “angry” with herself at the time of the match when it occurred during a straight-sets loss.
Becker, who won the US Open in 1989, wrote in response to a video of the moment on social media: “Who does Putintseva think she is?… terrible behaviour towards the ball girl.”
His tweet was in response to one who described it as an “ugly moment” during the match.
Piers Morgan also took to social media, criticising Putintseva’s “disgusting arrogance”.
He wrote: ‘What disgusting arrogance from @PutintsevaYulia. The ball girl should have thrown the third one in her mocking face.’
Meanwhile, Putintseva took to social media after her straight-sets defeat, writing: ‘I want to apologise to the ball girl for the way I was when she was giving me the balls.
‘To be honest, it wasn’t because of her. I was very angry with myself for not winning the game from the break point and afterwards I was left devoid of emotions and lost in my thoughts, not even concentrating on what was happening and who was giving me the ball.
‘All the ball kids did amazing as always at the Open.’
The first ball the youngster tried to pass to Putintseva was ignored by the Kazakh player, who let it hit her torso and bounce off.
Piers Morgan also criticised Putintseva, describing the moment as “disgusting arrogance”.
Jasmine Paolini defeated the Kazakh player in straight sets to reach the fourth round
Her second attempt to throw the ball towards the player was again ignored as it bounced off Putintseva’s feet and the player turned her head to watch it go away from her.
That’s when Putintseva was booed from all sides and caught the third ball without greeting the ball girl.
Putintseva then tried to grab one of the balls she had previously ignored, while the ball girl had her arms outstretched in almost disbelief.
There was no acknowledgement of the ball girl as Putintseva returned to the baseline, and footage showed the ball girl returning to her post with a wry smile and shaking her head at what had just happened.
Putintseva would win two more games, but fifth seed Paolini advanced to the fourth round with a 6-3, 6-4 victory.