It's one thing to refuse to shake hands with Guillermo Garcia Lopez in a minor event in Romania. But Lukas Rosol's shoulder bump of world's No. 3 Andy Murray is going to garner a lot more attention.
Tennis.com reported that Murray's 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 over Rosol in the quarterfinals of the BMW Open in Munich, Germany also had a display of poor sportsmanship.
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During one of the changeovers, Rosol bumped into Murray, seemingly intentionally. Murray complained to the chair umpire, according to Tennis.com, and then as the umpire was talking to Rosol, Murray interjected.
"No one likes you on the tour," Murray snapped. "Everyone hates you."
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After the match, Murray defended his actions, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
"He walked straight into me for no reason. If I walked into someone for no reason, I would say sorry. But he did it and then ran to the other end," said Murray. "His fitness trainer later apologized. I should not have said what I did but if someone does that and you don't respond you let them dictate how the match goes.
"I was told by my father that if you get pushed around then you stick up for yourself."
Murray said he used the bump to psyche himself up.
"It gives more motivation and I told him that in the locker room," Murray said. "I have had no problems with him before, but a lot of players say he does those sort of things. It's just silly."
Last week, Rosol lost to Garcia Lopez 6-4, 7-6 (7) in the quarterfinals of the BRD Nastase Tiriac Trophy in Bucharest, Romania. As the men were walking off the court after match point, it was Garcia Lopez who initially appeared uninterested - or at least forgetful - in the post-match handshake. Rosol extended his hand to no avail.
After Garcia Lopez got past the net, he then extended his hand, only to have Rosol wave him off. In that incident, Rosol did do the right thing initially by extending his hand.
But against the popular Murray, Rosol's antics were magnified, and now he has a budding reputation beyond tennis. Not coincidentally, while Murray was quoted after the match by multiple media outlets, Rosol was not.
Whose error was more egregious: Lukas Rosol for bumping Andy Murray or Andy Murray for telling Rosol, "Everybody hates you"? Comment below or tell us @SportsWN.
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