British tennis player Cameron Norrie expressed regret after a mishap during an ATP Tour event in Auckland, New Zealand, where his racket inadvertently hit a spectator. This incident occurred on Tuesday as Norrie was facing match point against Argentine player Facundo Diaz Acosta. In a moment of frustration, Norrie tossed his racket into the air, which accidentally landed near a woman sitting in a court-side box, although fortunately, she was unharmed.

The chair umpire issued a warning to Norrie following the incident, and he went on to lose the match with scores of 6-2, 6-3 in the first round. Norrie had previously made it to the final of the same tournament in 2023. Reflecting on the incident, Norrie stated, “I wasn’t meaning to do that but it’s still not ideal to be doing that and I’ve never done something like that.” He recounted how the spectator responded with laughter and reassured him, saying she was “completely OK.”

Norrie emphasized the potential severity of such incidents, mentioning that players, like Novak Djokovic, have faced disqualifications for hitting officials or audience members. Djokovic was removed from the 2020 US Open for unintentionally striking a line judge with a ball, while at the 2023 French Open, Miyu Kato and Aldila Sutjiadi were disqualified from the women’s doubles after a ball thrown by Kato hit a ball girl. Similarly, in 2023, Australian player Marc Polmans was disqualified during the Shanghai Masters after unintentionally hitting a chair umpire with a ball.

In his closing remarks about the incident, Norrie reiterated his regret, expressing dissatisfaction with his actions and extending an apology for how events unfolded. He emphasized that such behavior was not characteristic of him and stressed the importance of maintaining sportsmanship and control on the court.