A Major Officiating Error Against Cobolli
Earlier today, during the Shanghai Masters 1000 tournament, Stan Wawrinka was defeated in three tight sets, 7-6, 6-7, 3-6, by the young Italian Flavio Cobolli. Only one break separated the two players, and unfortunately, that break occurred following a significant officiating error by chair umpire Carlos Bernardes.
At the beginning of the third set, with both players neck-and-neck, Cobolli was unable to return Wawrinka’s serve on the first point of the second game. The chair umpire announced the score as 15-0.
However, distracted by Cobolli’s request for electrolytes during the changeover, Bernardes made a mistake and recorded the score as 0-15 instead. The result: after losing the second point, Wawrinka found himself down 0-30 instead of being tied at 15-all, a huge disadvantage. A few points later, Cobolli would secure the only break of the match, which ultimately led him to victory.
It's hard to believe that no one noticed the error, especially Wawrinka or his team.
Not Wawrinka's First Defeat to a Cobolli
At 39, Wawrinka continues to demonstrate remarkable resilience and skill, often competing against opponents nearly half his age. Today’s match against 22-year-old Flavio Cobolli highlights the generational gap, yet Wawrinka remains a formidable force on the court.
Interestingly, this isn’t Wawrinka's first encounter with a Cobolli. In an almost storybook twist, he faced Flavio's father, Stefano Cobolli, in the quarterfinals of the Brindisi Challenger tournament in 2003.
Now, over two decades later, Wawrinka finds himself battling the next generation, a rare but poignant reminder of the passing of time in the sport. Interestingly enough, this isn't the first time this occured:
While losing to a father and son across such a span is an unusual occurrence, it’s a testament to Wawrinka’s enduring presence at the highest levels of tennis, where players come and go, but champions like him remain a constant. Today’s result may not have gone his way, but Wawrinka’s legacy is cemented in tennis history—across generations.
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