Matt Reigle
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A tennis player is facing criticism after folks weren’t impressed by the handshake she gave her opponent after an upset loss at the Hamburg European Open.
Italian Martina Trevisan is the No. 76 player in the world and on Thursday she faced off against Germany’s Noma Noha Akugue, the 206th-ranked player in the world.
It’s safe to say the Italian was going into the match as the heavy favorite.
However, things didn’t work out her way and she lost to Noha Akugue. Then came the handshake which you can see below.
Blink and you’ll miss it.
Did you see it? Did you see the handshake?
Yeah, that did not make some tennis people happy at all.
Some of the handshakes on the WTA tour are a disgrace
— Liverpool Gamer (@liamvalid) July 27, 2023
I love it…..and that handshake by Trevisan was trash!!!
— Next Level♊️ (@sexisix3) July 28, 2023
Lack of sportswomanship on the tour. No eye contact, no real congratulations…not a good look for the WTA.
— Nancy J – Alan and Monica GH STAN (@OrdinaryfoolNJ) July 28, 2023
Nice handshake from Trevisan 🤦🏻♀️
— Tennis Idiot or not? (@DishingItTennis) July 27, 2023
Was That Really That Bad Of A Shake Given The Circumstances?
Obviously, this was a huge — and hugely emotional — win for Noha Akugue, but for Trevisan, it was a crushing defeat. It wasn’t the kindest embrace, but are we going to start splitting hairs like this?
There’s no rule that if she doesn’t give a handshake that lasts 3-Mississippi then she’s a sore loser. Trevisan made sure to shake hands with her opponent (briefly) and that should be enough.
Although, there could have been another reason for the cold handshake.
It was 3-3 in the second set when Noha Akugue crushed a ball at her while down 0-40 after the point was over.
Oh. That makes sense.
Trevisan was not happy after that and when you couple that with a loss, she was probably extra not happy.
I’m all for sportsmanship but I’m not sure what she was supposed to do in that moment. Carry Noha Akugue around the court on her shoulders? Give a speech honoring her opponent? Wash her car and drop off her dry cleaning?
Trevisan is a competitor and I can’t blame her for not wanting to hang around after a brutal loss like that.
Follow on Twitter: @Matt_Reigle
Wonder the people griping actually watch the match? My guess is that they didn’t.
Handshake was fine. Complaining losers on TwitterX no doubt low-key implying it was muh rahcism.
Handshakes like that happen all the time in tennis. This was no big deal.