Marin Cilic
David Nalbandian was defaulted in the Queen’s Club final on Sunday, when he injured a line judge after kicking a small barrier surrounding the judge. A piece of the barrier hit the line judge in the shin and caused bleeding. Marin Cilic was awarded the match and the title on Sunday despite trailing the Argentine 6-7, 4-3.
Nalbandian said that he should not have been disqualified. “Sometimes you get very frustrated on court and it’s tough to control that, and sometimes I do a mistake. So it’s very tough to end a final like that. But sometimes we feel so much pressure from the ATP to play a lot of tournaments. They don’t do anything (for) us, and today I do a mistake and I have to pay like that.
“I agree I do a mistake but sometimes everybody do a mistake and I didn’t feel it had to end like that, especially in a final.”
“It’s an unfortunate situation for everyone involved, the spectators, the tournament, the sponsors, the players and the linesman,” said ATP executive chairman and president Brad Drewett in a statement. “David certainly did not mean for this to happen, however the rules are very clear in a situation like this and causing injury to someone is an automatic default for any player.”
“It’s definitely not the way I wanted to win it,” Cilic said. “The match was still open but I can’t change it. I’m sorry for the (spectators) that it had to end like this.
“We had some good rallies, and it’s hard to see the final end like this,†Clic said.
“I played well today and came here to play four, five matches. I won them pretty comfortably in those first two or three. I’m feeling really good and I think my form is on the spot where it should be.
“I think that the beginning of the second set was really good from my side; to break him and to keep a few holds to get to the later stages of the second set. I think I played the right way. The tennis was really good today. He was making really, really good returns and putting me under pressure a lot of times.”
“There is a lot of rules, and sometimes they (ATP officials) don’t do anything. The rule book is very big and I can tell you that the ATP do a lot of mistakes to the players and nothing happens,” Nalbandian said.
Singles – Final
[6] M Cilic (CRO) d [10] D Nalbandian (ARG) 67(3) 43 Defaulted (unsportsmanlike conduct)
Doubles – Final
[1] M Mirnyi (BLR) / D Nestor (CAN) d [2] B Bryan (USA) / M Bryan (USA) 63 64
