Tiafoe punished with $120K fine for abusing official at Shanghai Masters 2024

American Frances Tiafoe was punished by the ATP recently for abusing chair umpire Jimmy Pinoargote after losing his third-round battle against Roman Safiullin from Russia at the 2024 Shanghai Masters in October.

The tennis body slapped a $120,000 fine on Tiafoe for his tirade-ridden rant at Pinoargote after the official stripped him of a first serve at 5-5 for time violation during the intense tiebreaker in the deciding set. The American ended up losing the high-octane battle 5-7, 7-5, 7-6 (5).

After shaking Safiullin’s hand at the net, Tiafoe proceeded to hurl abuses at Pinoargote, expressing discontent over the official’s decision to penalise him during the match.

Hours after the outburst, Tiafoe took to Instagram and issued an apology to the umpire, tournament organisers, and his fans. He wrote:

“That’s not acceptable behavior and I want to apologize to the umpire, the tournament, and the fans. I’ll be better for y’all.”

The world No 18 was apparently close to being suspended for his actions but the ATP decided to let the American go with a monetary retribution — $60,000 for verbal abuse and as many for aggravated behaviour.

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