Opelka Fumes Over Umpire’s Call in Dramatic Dallas Open Clash
Reilly Opelka was left outraged by a controversial decision during his match against Cameron Norrie, refusing to shake the chair umpire’s hand after a heated exchange.
The American, playing as a wildcard, clashed with a disruptive heckler late in the third set and lashed out verbally, shouting, “Get out of here.” As a result, he was handed a point penalty for an audible obscenity while serving for the match. Despite the setback, Opelka managed to close out a 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-4 victory to reach the Dallas Open quarter-finals.
Heckling Incident Sparks Chaos
The drama unfolded at 5-4, 30-30 in the deciding set when a spectator repeatedly coughed and disrupted Opelka’s serve. Frustrated, he confronted the individual, asking, “You doing it on f**ing purpose or what?”* before demanding they leave.
Chair umpire Greg Allensworth immediately issued Opelka a code violation for using profanity, resulting in a point penalty and giving Norrie a crucial break point. The decision stunned the crowd, who had witnessed the ongoing disturbances.
Opelka, furious with the call, stormed to the chair to argue his case. He insisted the umpire failed to control the situation and unfairly penalized him instead of addressing the heckler. The supervisor was called to the court, but the decision stood. Opelka ultimately saved the break point and secured the win, but his frustration did not subside.
Opelka Calls for Umpire to Be Suspended
After the match, Opelka refused to shake Allensworth’s hand and publicly criticized his officiating.
“[The heckler] kept coughing and was hiding behind a pole. I’m like, ‘Dude, I see you.’ The guy got kicked out, and I got penalized. It makes no sense.”
The world No. 145 argued that the umpire mishandled the situation, allowing the heckler’s antics to persist for multiple points.
“[The umpire] got emotional, like we were arguing. He got very intense and frantic, couldn’t give me an answer. He didn’t tell that guy to shut up. He was doing it for like three points.”
“He didn’t do a good job, so I had to tell him to get out of here. The guy was being quite rude.”
Opelka defended his actions, stating he had no choice but to stand up for himself.
“If you want to come here to be an a**hole, then I’m going to be one back. It shouldn’t be one-sided traffic. If you want to be disrespectful to me, I can’t just be a punching bag.”
He further slammed the officiating, suggesting Allensworth should be disciplined for his decision.
“If I lose that point, I lose that match. That’s a difference in my paycheck. He gets no repercussions. That was bush league.”
“The guy shouldn’t have a job or should be sidelined for about four weeks and learn a thing or two. You can’t make those calls in ATP 500s. You’ve got to understand the situation. You can’t always play by the rulebook. It’s common sense.”
With emotions still running high, Opelka now turns his attention to an all-American quarter-final clash against No. 3 seed Tommy Paul.
