The US Open always brings high drama, but Sunday night at Flushing Meadows produced one of the most chaotic matches in recent memory. Former champion Daniil Medvedev, seeded 13th, crashed out of the tournament in a five-set thriller to France’s Benjamin Bonzi, but it was the Russian’s furious reaction to a courtside incident that stole the spotlight.
Bonzi advanced to the second round with a 6-3, 7-5, 6-7 (5), 0-6, 6-4 victory, outlasting Medvedev over three hours and 45 minutes in Louis Armstrong Stadium. The rollercoaster contest had already showcased momentum swings and resilience, but it spiraled into controversy late in the third set after an extraordinary moment of outside interference.
Daniil Medvedev was visibly upset after a camera person walked on the court at match point. pic.twitter.com/5wnVf2GSFm
— ESPN (@espn) August 25, 2025
Serving for the match at 5-4 in the third, Bonzi held match point when chair umpire Greg Allensworth suddenly halted play. A cameraman had mistakenly walked into the court area, forcing Allensworth to call time. Declaring the incident an “outside interference,” the umpire awarded Bonzi a new first serve—an application of the rules that ignited an explosive reaction from Medvedev.
The 2021 US Open champion stormed toward the umpire’s chair, shouting in disbelief. “Are you a man? Are you a man?” Medvedev barked before accusing Allensworth of rushing to end the contest. Turning to a courtside microphone, he added with dripping sarcasm, “He wants to go home, guys. He doesn’t like to be here; he gets paid by the match, not by the hour.”
Whipping up the Louis Armstrong Stadium crowd, Medvedev gestured wildly, prompting a wave of boos that stalled play for more than six minutes. The interruption rattled Bonzi, who failed to close out the match on that attempt. Medvedev saved a match point, surged in the tiebreak, and stole the set to keep his hopes alive.
With adrenaline coursing through his game, Medvedev blitzed the fourth set 6-0, appearing to have turned the match completely on its head. Bonzi, however, regained composure in the decider. Twice the Frenchman broke back after falling behind and, in a display of grit, seized the final break to seal the biggest Grand Slam victory of his career.
“It was crazy,” Bonzi admitted afterward. “I never experienced something like that. Maybe we wait five minutes before the match point, and it was so difficult to play. I tried to stay calm and stay in the match, but it was not easy. The energy was wild—thanks to all those who were booing; it gave me energy in the fifth.”
For Medvedev, the defeat marked another low point in a disappointing season. After slumping to his bench, he smashed his racquet in frustration, his body language reflecting both anger and disbelief. The Russian becomes the first former champion to exit this year’s US Open, continuing a string of poor results at the majors in 2025.
The episode revived memories of Medvedev’s controversial 2019 appearance at the same venue, when he taunted fans after being booed and was fined for multiple on-court outbursts. While his 2021 triumph remains a career highlight, moments like Sunday night reinforce his reputation as one of the sport’s most combustible personalities.
As Bonzi moves on to the second round, Medvedev leaves New York with more questions than answers. Once again, his tennis brilliance was overshadowed by a storm of controversy; this time, sparked not by his opponent but by a wandering cameraman.
