'Having a whinge': Rival fumes as Jordan Thompson catches his hat mid-rally to take set
Perhaps Jordan Thompson deserved a tip of the cap for winning a set-ending point at Wimbledon while clutching his hat after it fell off his head during a serve.
His opponent, Luciano Darderi, thought that point shouldn't have been awarded to Thompson, but the chair umpire disagreed.
“I mean, my hat’s fallen off before, and I know what the rules are. It didn't hinder him; it hindered me,” said the 44th ranked Australian, who will face US Open runner-up Taylor Fritz next.
READ MORE: Aussies hold shaky lead as Windies rue 'debatable' Head catch
READ MORE: 'Ridiculous': Gus calls for change to NRL points system
READ MORE: 'Filthy' Ciraldo deflects burning Galvin question
“So I don't know what he was complaining about.”
At 5-4, 40-15 against Darderi, Thompson used a hat trick to put a lid on the opening set en route to a 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 victory that sent him to the fourth round at the All England Club for the first time.
The chair umpire ruled Thompson did nothing wrong. Stan Sport
On a second serve, the backward baseball cap Thompson was wearing slid off as he landed on his follow-through. Thompson immediately grabbed it with his left hand and continued to wield his racket with his right hand for a point that wound up lasting seven strokes.
It was capped by Thompson's backhand volley winner as he ran to the net with hat in hand.
Has he ever carried that bit of his outfit around during a point before?
Luciano Darderi fumed at the umpire over the hat. Stan Sport
“That’s the first time I can remember,” Thompson said.
In the moment, Darderi thought chair umpire Mohamed Lahyani would stop the point and order them to replay it because of what happened with Thompson's chapeau.
The 59th-ranked Darderi, who was born in Argentina and represents Italy, walked to the sideline pointing in Thompson's direction and pleading his case with Lahyani.
At one point, Darderi yanked off his own white hat and yelled, “It's the rule!”
Darderi felt wronged by the turn of events. Stan Sport
But Lahyani wouldn't budge, and Darderi chucked his racquet toward the sideline seat, drawing some boos from spectators at Court 18.
As the conversation between Darderi and Lahyani continued during the changeover between sets, Thompson pointed out that the rules address when a player's hat hits the court — “Happened to me a few times,” he said — rather than if it's caught out of the air.
“It didn’t seem normal to me to play a point with a hat in your hand. It was strange,” Darderi said at his news conference later. “But it was just one point. It didn’t change the match.”
Watch all the action from Wimbledon 2025 live & on-demand on Stan Sport, with two courts in 4K UHD. Coverage of select matches free-to-air on Nine and streaming on 9Now
On that, both players certainly agreed.
“It’s not like it was 5-all in the fifth, deuce,” Thompson said. “Every point’s big, but it is what it is.”
Speaking to Stan Sport after the match, said he understood his opponent's gripe.
"He was having a bit of a whinge, but I get where he's coming from, but, you know, rules are rules, so just gotta play by them.
"My hat's fallen off before and most of the calls have honestly gone against me and that one, it puts him off. I guess if you had to stop the point, I would have happily replayed it, but, I guess it, it doesn't count unless it, hits the deck, so play on. Pretty wild match.
"He was quite vocal for, most of the match. I got vocal there for a set, but, it's probably better off, letting him do the talking."
Thompson said it felt incredible to get to the final 16 at Wimbeldon for the first time in his career.
"If someone told me that I was gonna be in the fourth round with the preparation I've had, I'd say show me the dotted line.
"I'd be quick to grab the pen. I think grass is my best surface and it hasn't really shown at Wimbledon so to finally, you know, live up to somewhat expectations is, extremely pleasing."
