Tennis Controversies of the Week: Martina Hingis under fire over Iga Swiatek match commentary at WTA Finals; John McEnroe’s brother Patrick hits back at harsh remarks comparing duo’s success, and more
Swiss tennis icon Martina Hingis drew criticism over her commentary during Iga Swiatek’s WTA Finals clash. In other news, Patrick McEnroe defended himself against criticism of being in his brother John McEnroe’s shadow.
Meanwhile, Barbora Krejcikova called out a tennis insider for an “unprofessional” comment on her looks. Daria Kasatkina took aim at a controversial rule that granted Krejcikova a WTA Finals entry.
Also, Stan Wawrinka faced backlash for criticizing Stefanos Tsitsipas over his comments on the two-week-long Masters.
On that note, here’s a recap of the top tennis controversies from last week:
Martina Hingis faced backlash over her commentary during Iga Swiatek’s WTA Finals match
Martina Hingis faced criticism for her incessant chatting and allegedly mocking the players’ complaints about the season’s length during the final group-stage match between Iga Swiatek and Daria Kasatkina at the 2024 WTA Finals.
Swiatek won the match decisively, 6-1, 6-0, but tennis fans were disappointed by Hingis’ commentary on Tennis Channel+. Taking to X, one fan expressed frustration, feeling Hingis’ presence in the commentary box detracted from the match, as the commentators engaged in an “unproductive” conversation during the match.
“My biggest pet peeve in sports is when there’s a special guest in the commentary booth and they totally ignore the game to interview that person WTA has a really bad habit of doing that during WTA Finals, which is especially bad as it’s their premiere event,” a fan lashed out.
“Like is there a more unproductive convo than talking about how Iga should potentially play a full-time doubles schedule because that’s how it was back in your day?” the fan questioned.
