“I need to go to the bathroom. I can’t move anymore. I’m going on the court,” Gia said in French to the chair umpire before quickly running away from Court Suzanne-Lenglen.
The 135th-ranked Jia was trailing 13th-seeded Karen Khachanov 4-2 when she made her move. Khachanov won 6-3, 7-6(3), 6-0.
Typically, bathroom breaks are only allowed in between sets.
Khachanov protested to the chair umpire because at one point in the match three minutes had passed between play, with the match not ending when players made changes.
Gea said that the umpire allowed him a break due to “medical circumstances” and he was given some medicine to cure his stomach pain.
After the match, Gee said that he had not felt sick the previous night but that he began to feel unwell as soon as he woke up in the morning.
“It was even worse during the match,” he said. “I had to go to the toilet really quickly.”
His situation was not helped by the intense heat at Roland Garros, where the temperature reached 31 °C (88 Fahrenheit) at lunch.
“It was more difficult than usual, because I was sick,” he said.
The 21-year-old Zia received a wild card invitation from Roland Garros organizers to participate in the main draw.
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AP Tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
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