Lineswoman hit in bizarre end to professional tennis match

A little known tennis tournament in the United States has been thrust into the world spotlight after a bizarre end to a match that saw a lineswoman hit by a racquet.

Professionals Darian King and Edmund Currie were slugging it out at the Charlottesville Challenger in Virginia when King lost a point and threw his racquet in frustration.The 22-year-old, who had lost the first set, had just gone 2-4 down in a second-set tiebreak and decided to vent his anger by taking aim at a heavy curtain surrounding the court.While his aim was true, his racquet unfortunately ricocheted off the material and hit a nearby lineswoman.Though the impact appeared minimal, the official fell to the ground where she remained for several minutes.“Boy that is just brutal,” a match commentator said.“King throws his racquet into the tarp and it lands on our linesperson who collapses, her right knee buckling… on my gosh.”While King was quick to plead his innocence saying he ‘didn’t hit her’, tournament officials deemed the incident serious enough to warrant punishment and immediately defaulted him, handing the match to his opponent.Replays later confirmed that his racquet made light contact with the woman, but any contact between a player and official can result is disqualification.