Adolfo Daniel Vallejo given 'significant sanction' after 'unacceptable' comments about umpire Ana Carvalho at French Open

Vallejo said his second-round match against France’s Moise Kouame should not have been umpired by a woman as they do not have the ”courage” to deal with the crowd.

"I think these sort of matches should be umpired by a man," Vallejo told Clay magazine.

"It's very difficult for a woman to do it because the crowd is very annoying and you need to have a lot of courage to go against the crowd.”

The comments, which have been widely criticised, came after Vallejo was beaten in five sets by 17-year-old Kouame.

Vallejo later wrote on X that his remarks were taken out of context, but the French Open have responded by saying they were ”unacceptable” and there will be a punishment handed out in the form of a fine.

”The French Tennis Federation and the Roland-Garros tournament organisers have taken note of Adolfo Daniel Vallejo’s comments about the umpire following his match, and deem these comments unacceptable,” said the Grand Slam tournament's organisers in a statement.

”The competence of an umpire is not determined by their gender, but by their professionalism and ability to officiate at the highest level. The outcome of a sporting event, whether positive or negative, can never justify or excuse such remarks.

”The tournament organisers will impose a significant sanction on Adolfo Vallejo in the form of a fine.

”The Roland-Garros tournament strongly condemns all sexist remarks, regardless of who makes them, and offers its support to the match umpire and, more broadly, to all the tournament’s umpiring officials.”

TNT Sports expert Anne Keothavong said she was in "disbelief" after hearing Vallejo's remarks.

Keothavong, whose brother James has been a leading chair umpire on tour for a number of years, said: "When I read it I honestly thought it was fake news.

"I thought he couldn’t possibly have said that after his loss yesterday. I know you’re dealing with the disappointment, and you've been out there for just under five hours, we all make mistakes, but yeah, I was in disbelief. How dare he?

"The umpire, I thought, did a great job. It’s not an easy situation for anyone to be in. The Parisian crowd were fantastic. The atmosphere was amazing. That’s what you’d expect here at Roland-Garros when you’re up against a French person."

Vallejo said that he felt the umpire was unable to control the "annoying" and "intense" crowd.

"There were times during that match she tried to silence the crowd, asked them politely," added Keothavong.

"But there’s only so much one person in the chair can do. And you’ve got 10,000 people around the court.

"My brother has done all the finals, but there’s also female umpires out there who have done the exact same as he has done. If I’m talking about my brother I do think he’s one of the best umpires in the world because he is firm, he has the respect of the players.

"Ana Carvalho doesn’t have as much experience but does have the respect of the players, and I don’t think she did a bad job whatsoever. It takes time to build up relationships with players as a chair umpire.

"But Daniel Vallejo, he has a lot to learn. He is 22 years of age and I know he’s apologised for his comments, he may have thought they’ve been taken out of context.

"It’s a reminder to all these players you need to take time to gather your thoughts before you address the press, manage some of those emotions properly."

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