Originally appeared on E! Online
Yulia Putintseva is serving up an apology.
The tennis player said she was sorry for the way she acted towards a ball girl at the 2024 US Open.
The viral moment occurred during Putintseva’s match against Jasmine Paolini on Aug. 31. As seen in videos shared on social media, a ball girl supplied the 29-year-old with tennis balls so she could serve. But after the ball girl threw her a ball, Putintseva didn’t move and just let it bounce to the side. So, the ball girl tried again. However, the same thing happened. It wasn’t until the ball girl’s third throw that Putintseva caught the ball and proceeded to play.
The athlete received criticism for her behavior—both from the crowd (who could be heard booing in the videos) and from social media users.
“I feel bad for the ball girl,” one user on X, formerly known as Twitter, wrote on Sept. 1, “I can't believe yulia had this attitude.” Added another, “So rude and disrespectful!”
Shortly after the match — which Paolini won — Putintseva issued an apology.
"I want to apologize to the ball girl for the way I was, when she was giving me balls," she wrote in a since expired Instagram Stories post, per a screenshot shared by Sports Illustrated. "Honestly speaking it was not about her. I was really pissed at myself by not winning the game from the breakpoint and then got empty with my emotions and deep in my thoughts, that I was not even focusing on what’s going on and who gives me the ball...All the ball kids was doing amazing as always at the open.”
Paolini went on to play in the next round but lost to Karolína Muchová on Sept. 2.
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The 2024 U.S. Open runs until Sept. 8.
