Elena Rybakina es strong distrust in the electronic line-calling system following a controversial decision at the Madrid Open. The world No. 2 confronted the umpire during her third-round match against Qinwen Zheng when a serve was awarded as an ace at 3-4, 30-0 in the second set. The clay court mark clearly indicated the ball was out, yet umpires cannot overrule electronic calls by inspecting marks.
The Controversial Call
Umpire Julie Kjendlie told Rybakina, “I can’t go down,” emphasizing the binding nature of the live electronic line calls (ELC). Rybakina gestured to the mark and responded, “It’s like that. This is not a joke. The system is wrong. This is not a joke. There is no touching. The mark which is shown on the TV… it is absolutely wrong.” The umpire reiterated, “Now that we have live ELC, that’s what I have to go with.”
Despite the frustration, Rybakina rallied from a set down to secure a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory over Zheng.
Rybakina’s Post-Match Critique
After the match, Rybakina stated, “Well, with this thing, I won’t trust it at all. Because there was no mark even close to what the TV showed.” She described the incident as “pretty frustrating” and “kind of a stolen point,” noting Zheng’s strong serving but highlighting the clear discrepancy. Rybakina compared it to a similar dispute involving Alexander Zverev last year, saying, “It was, I think, similar to what Zverev had last year because it was in front of her nose. You can’t not see it.”
Previous Disputes at Madrid
Electronic line calls on clay have sparked debate before. Last year, Alexandra Eala faced a similar issue in her second-round match against Iga Swiatek, where a serve appeared out despite the system’s call.
In 2025, ATP No. 3 Alexander Zverev photographed a disputed mark during his third-round match against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina after a forehand was ruled in. He received a code violation but won in three sets. Zverev later explained, “It’s not the umpire’s fault, because if he by rule cannot go down, he cannot go down. So it’s not Mohamed [Lahyani]’s fault. But I will talk to the supervisors, I will talk to the ATP, because as I said, this is not normal. For a mistake to happen like this, yes, one or two millimetres I understand, but four, five centimetres is not normal.”
