Wimbledon star disqualified from tournament for a very rare rule break
A player at Wimbledon was disqualified from the girls’ singles after breaking a very rare rule.
Fifteen-year-old Ida Wobker was down 0-6, 5-5 in her first-round match against Romania’s Maria Valentina Pop when she hit the ball long at 30-30. Frustrated, she threw her racquet to the ground, and it bounced into the crowd. Wobker quickly walked over to apologize to the spectators.
The match was paused, and a second referee came out to talk with the chair umpire about what to do. Luckily, no one in the crowd was hurt by the racquet, but Wobker was given a code violation for unsportsmanlike conduct. This led to her being defaulted, meaning Pop won the match.
The International Tennis Federation (ITF) rules say players can’t throw or hit their racquets or other equipment in anger during the tournament. Breaking this rule can lead to penalties, including disqualification.
Wobker, ranked 24th in the ITF junior rankings, had been playing well, having won a tournament in Cairo in April and reaching a career-high ranking of 16. But she couldn’t keep that momentum against Pop.
After the match, Wobker shared a message on Instagram saying, “S**t happens, you learn from it!”
Pop will now face British wildcard Danielle Britton in round two. Another British player, 18-year-old Mika Stojsavljevic, also took part, but lost in the first round to 11th seed Belinda Bencic. Stojsavljevic won the junior singles at the 2024 US Open and reached the doubles final at Wimbledon this year.
While Stojsavljevic and Britton are doing well, most British players in the girls’ singles lost in the first round. The main British hope in the tournament is Arthur Fery, who is the last Brit left after reaching the fourth round.