Chinese player Zhang Shuai withdrew in tears from a tennis tournament match in Hungary on Tuesday, after her Hungarian opponent Amariša Tóth erased a mark on the sandy court following a dispute between them. Zhang, the second seed, hit a forehand that appeared to land on the line, but the line judge called it out of bounds. The main referee came down to check the mark to confirm it was outside the line. Zhang became furious and requested to speak with the tournament supervisor.
The match continued for one more point, but the argument over the disputed incident persisted until Tóth approached the mark on the ground and wiped it away with her shoe. Zhang shouted, "Wait, wait, wait! Keep the mark. What are you doing?"
Zhang appeared visibly upset during the changeover, and a doctor was called to check on her before the world number 28 decided to withdraw while trailing 5-6 in the opening set of the match in Budapest. The Hungarian crowd responded with boos following Zhang's withdrawal, while Tóth shook her hand before raising her arms in celebration.
Later, Zhang took to Instagram to complain about the incident and thanked all her supporters. Some players quickly condemned Tóth's behavior on social media. Australian Ajla Tomljanović tweeted: "Absolutely disgusting behavior. Shuai is a better person than a lot of us for shaking the ref and that girl's hand. But then again it’s Shuai we are talking about, of course she did."
