Aussie tennis star Jordan Thompson destroys his racquet in extraordinary on-court meltdown before losing epic five-set thriller
- Jordan Thompson vented his frustration on his racquet at the Australian Open
- He twice smashed his racquet after a poor start against Italian Fabio Fognini
- The broken racquet sparked a comeback for the Aussie, taking the next two sets
- The deciding set was pushed to a tiebreak, with Fognini taking the win 10-5
Australian tennis star Jordan Thompson destroyed his racquet during an epic on court meltdown at the Australian Open, before losing an epic five-set thriller.
The 24-year-old, from Sydney, lashed out in his second round clash with Italian number 12 seed Fabio Fognini.
After losing the first set in a tiebreak and slumping to 5-1 in the second, Thompson hit a backhand long before venting his frustration on his racquet.
Australian tennis star Jordan Thompson has launched into an extraordinary meltdown at the Australian Open
Thompson twice slammed his racquet into the ground in front of a gasping crowd, before gaining momentum in the match and claiming the next two sets
Thompson slammed his racquet into the ground, with the Margaret Court Arena crowd gasping at his outburst, before picking it up and slamming it again.
Channel 9 commentators said Thompson needed to ‘get it out of his system’ and move on in the match.
‘Frustrations boiling over, you can understand it,’ said one commentator.
‘May as well, if you’re going to do you may as well do it properly.’
‘It’s the release, it’s an emotional release,’ the other commentator agreed. ‘I’ve got no problem with that, as long as you just get on with it, which he will.’
Thompson’s incredible outburst generated a remarkable turnaround for the gritty Australian, who gained momentum into the third set, racing out to a 3-0 lead.
He claimed the third set 6-3, and then the fourth 6-4, pushing the match into a deciding set.
The fifth set went to a tiebreak, with Fognini taking the win 10-5.
Thompson’s mangled racquet after venting his frustrations on Margaret Court Arena