Security guard target of French player’s ire

PARIS – French tennis player Michael Llodra likened the court at the French Open to an Arab marketplace after receiving a warning from Moroccan chair umpire Mohamed El Jennati for throwing a ball at a female security guard in the stands on Monday.

Upset that the guard was distracting him, the 22nd-seeded Llodra lost his cool during the second set of his first-round loss to Belgian qualifier Steve Darcis. TV footage of the incident showed Llodra comparing the atmosphere on the court to a souk, a commercial quarter in Arab cities.

“We are not in a souk. We are not selling carpets in a market,” Llodra told the umpire after receiving his warning.

Llodra, who lost 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-3, 6-3, then said at a post-match news conference he umpire should not have warned him for the incident and should have instead called the security staff or told the female guard to stop moving. He added that he felt the umpire’s decision was unfair and said he just told El Jennati “to do his job.”

Tournament organizers told the Associated Press that El Jennati was not available for comment because he is not allowed to speak during the two-week tournament.

Tournament director Gilbert Ysern said no action would be taken against Llodra.

“It’s just a chair umpire call, and Michael Llodra’s comments following the incident ended the argument,” Ysern said in a statement to the Associated Press.