Maria Sakkari has not enjoyed the transformative 2024 that she would have hoped for, although it is an unfortunate disappointment that we have sadly become accustomed to with the Greek tennis star.
With all the talent and physical prowess needed to challenge at the top of the game, it just has just not clicked, and even a coaching change has not been able to coax any success out of her of late.
An Indian Wells final back in March marks the closest she has come to a title in a while, but her performances in both Grand Slams this campaign have been as dismal as expected with the 28-year-old.
And now, ahead of next week’s Wimbledon, her preparation has hardly inspired confidence either.
Why Maria Sakkari fumed at the chair umpire
After all, a first-round exit to the world number 88 is far from fine form heading into the third Grand Slam of the season.
Facing Jule Niemeier in her homeland at the Bad Homburg Open, it was expected that Sakkari would cruise through this challenge, given the German has predominantly featured on the ITF Circuit this year.
However, despite racing into a one-set lead, the German would battle back to win the next two and dump out the number one seed.
The match was mired by one moment though, in which Sakkari appeared to accuse the chair umpire of bias towards his compatriot, her opponent.
Mid-way through the third and final set, she complained after a ball that had been called out, and she in turn struck out, was overruled and called in.
Instead of replaying the point, the chair umpire saw fit to give the point to Niemeier, provoking outrage from Sakkari.
‘It is all my judgement now,’ the umpire defended, sparking the following response from the disgruntled tennis star: ‘Well of course, you’re German, you’re going to…’.
The crowd did not appreciate that suggestion, cutting her off with boos and whistles whilst she protested: ‘You think I don’t know what’s happening here? You think I was born yesterday?’
This is far from the first explosive rant between player and referee that we have seen this year, with Coco Gauff fuming at one chair umpire back in February.
Maria Sakkari is not looking good for Wimbledon
This loss marked a third-straight first-round exit for Sakkari, and has once again stunted her preparation ahead of Wimbledon next week.
Failing to find her feet in Berlin, where Victoria Azarenka dispatched her in straight sets, to then lose to Qualifier Niemeier marked another kick in the teeth.
Before that, she had also lost to Varvara Gracheva at the French Open too, further compounding her misery.
It marked yet another woeful showing at a Grand Slam, and only twice in her entire career has she bypassed the fourth round at this level event.
All the signs suggest that Wimbledon will not mark the shattering of that woeful trend.
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