#Umplyfe: A Miniseries

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Fabio Fognini’s 2014 season ended on Wednesday. The 7-6, 7-6 loss to France’s Lucas Pouille in the second round of the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris-Bercy was as topsy-turvy as you can imagine. In fitting fashion, the hot-headed Italian couldn’t head into his vacation without getting into a dispute with one more umpire.

This time, however, the umpire fired back.

Kind of.

While it’s unclear what caused Fognini to initially blow up at Carlos Bernardes, the drama began late in the second set tiebreak. Pouille hit an ace to level the tiebreak at 7-7, and then hit a clean winner to set up match point. Following this chain of events, Fognini yelled at Carlos Bernardes, and the French crowd booed. (Duh.) The Italian then double-faulted on match point to give the 20-year-old the win, and end his season. After shaking Pouille’s hand but neglecting eye contact, Fognini returned to Barnardes.

It seemed as though the man from Brazil had finally had enough. Bernardes initially declined to shake Fognini’s hand, before the two engaged in strong back-and-forth dialogue. They eventually shook hands, but the conversation continued as the two left the court.

Normally, it’s the player that refuses to shake hands with the umpire, but Bernardes took one for the team and flipped the script on its head in Paris. In his honor, we at TTI thought we’d take the time to look back at some of the more melodramatic player/umpire duels of yesteryear.

Alizé Cornet and Fiona Edwards – Eastbourne 2014

A Premier-level event, Eastbourne is one of the biggest tournaments on the WTA Tour to not have Hakweye in use. With this newfound freedom, Alizé “A Little Bit Dramatic” Cornet expressed her dissatisfaction with every call that didn’t go her way for the duration of her third round, 7-5, 1-6, 7-6(3) loss to Angelique Kerber earlier this summer. Even – or perhaps especially – the correct ones.

While the crowd found it funny, Great Britain’s Fiona Edwards was less than amused, particularly in this final set exchange.

It gets better, Fiona. Wimbledon has Hawkeye. Unless, of course, you’re on Court 16.

YouTube not enough? Do it for the Vine, Alizé.

Andy Roddick and Emmanuel Joseph – Australian Open 2008

Andy Roddick was asking umpires if they went to school before it was mainstream.

Jelena Jankovic and Eva Asderaki – Cincinnati 2011 (and 2013)

Weird things happen to Jelena Jankovic in Cincinnati. She ran out of gas and stood in the middle of the road while other players drove by. She played this match against Elena Dementieva. She singlehandedly brought about the end of Kader Nouni’s beardless phase. Allegedly.

The subplot of the Serb’s adventurous stays in the American midwest has been multiple run-ins with Eva Asderaki. In 2011, Jankovic and Francesca Schiavone played one of the most dramatic matches of the year. It’s a pity it doesn’t exist in its entirety any where. In a round of 16 match that had it all, Jankovic eventually emerged the victor, 6-3, 5-7, 6-4, but while Jankovic led by a set and a break, she and Asderaki disagreed about the meaning of the word “late.”

Two years later in 2013, they bickered like an old, married couple during Jankovic’s semifinal match against Victoria Azarenka. It was everything. Highlights included “JELENA. I’m not saying that!” and “Call the supervisor and show me this rule!”

Who knows what will happen in 2015? #besties

Caroline Wozniacki and a lineswoman – Eastbourne 2013 

“Do you know the rule?” “I know the rule.” “Does she know the rule?” #quotememaybe

Victoria Azarenka and Kerrilyn Cramer – Linz 2012

What came first, the chicken or the egg? If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? Why is was Kerrilyn Cramer always on Victoria Azarenka’s matches?

Some questions in this world have no answers. #whoknows

Did your favorite spat miss the cut? Sound off in the comments!