Frances Tiafoe issues public apology after expletive-laden rant at the Shanghai Masters

Frances Tiafoe has issued an apology after an expletive-laden rant during his Shanghai Masters loss to Roman Safiullin.

Tiafoe labelled Safiullin a dark horse before their Shanghai Masters round of 32 tie, which the latter won 5-7, 7-5, 7-6(7-5).

But the loss was not without controversy, with Tiafoe furious with umpire Jimmy Pinoargote at the end of the match.

His anger, which involved several expletives, came after being given a time violation with the tie-break level at 5-5.

Tiafoe claimed he threw the ball up to serve, but Pinoargote ruled he started the serve, forcing him to start on second serve.

Frances Tiafoe apologises after Shanghai Masters rant

The American, who recently reached the US Open semi-finals, then lost the point and went on to suffer a shock early exit.

His emotions certainly got the better of him on court, but he has since seemingly calmed down, issuing an apology on social media.

“I really apologise for the way I acted tonight,” Tiafoe wrote on his Instagram story. “That is not who I am and not how I want to treat people.

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“I let my frustration in the heat of the moment get the best of me and I’m extremely disappointed with how I handled the situation.

“That’s not acceptable behaviour and I want to apologise to the umpire, the tournament and the fans. I’ll be better for y’all.”

Tiafoe is extremely disappointed with his actions at the end of the match, but he will also be upset having suffered an early exit.

The Shanghai Masters 13th seed would have been eyeing a lengthy run at the Chinese tournament, particularly after Tiafoe suffered an early Japan Open exit.

And he now faces a punishment for his furious outburst, with a fine of up to $60,000 (£46,000) on the cards.

His rant can be classified as a verbal abuse offence under ATP rules, although the fine may not make too much of a dent in his career earnings.

The 26-year-old American, who is currently ranked 17th in the world, has three ATP-level titles to his name so far.