Madison Keys was left tearful after being forced to retire in devastating fashion in her last 16 match at Wimbledon against Jasmine Paolini.
The American player was on the cusp of a quarter-final berth when disaster struck whilst leading 5-4 in the third set.
Keys called for a medical time-out on Court 1 and after leaving the court returned with heavy strapping around her thigh.
The discomfort proved too much though and at 5-5 she was forced to retire and left the court in tears.
Paolini naturally wanted to celebrate her latest Wimbledon victory but instead, she showed a classy gesture towards her opponent.
What Jasmine Paolini did after claiming win over Madison Keys
Well, this is never a nice way for a match to finish, not least one at a tournament like Wimbledon.
Paolini would have been well within her right to celebrate the fact that she has reached the last eight at SW19 for the first time.
However, she remained next to her chair and joined in with the crowd who gave Keys the send-off she deserved after such a great match.
When interviewed following her win, she also had some nice words for her opponent.
She said on BBC Sport: “Now, I am so sorry for her, to end the match like this, is really bad. What can I say? I think we played a really good match, was really tough, with lots of ups and downs.
“I am feeling a little bit happy but also sad for her because it’s not easy to win like that but I hope you enjoyed the match.
“It was really close, I started really well but she had great tennis, she’s a great competitor, she raised her level and it was tough to return balls because they were really fast but I was repeating to myself that you never know in tennis and at the end I am here with the win.”
Paolini could go all the way at Wimbledon
The Italian number seven seed is playing some sound tennis at the moment and she’s on a bit of a crest of a wave.
Paolini reached the final at Roland Garros last month but was beaten by Iga Swiatek at the final hurdle.
She’s enjoyed a decent grass court season too, reaching the semi-final at Eastbourne before losing to Daria Katsakina.
Now, she’s showcasing that she has what it takes to go and get her hands on a major title for the first time.
The 28-year-old has been something of a late bloomer as a professional but she does have a bit of time on her side.
With some big names out of the running at this year’s Wimbledon, Paolini might view this as a great opportunity to etch her name onto the honour’s board at SW19.
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