Rafael Jodar has apologised after swearing at a ball kid at the Shanghai Masters.
The 20-year-old Spaniard, who is ranked 13th in the world after a breakthrough season, was penalised for the outburst during his last-16 win over Botic van de Zandschulp on Wednesday.
Jodar received a warning from the chair umpire following the incident, which came early in the second set after Jodar had lost the first.
He is reported to have said “Dame la puta toalla, coño” - which translates to “Give me the f------ towel, damn it!”
Chair umpire Jimmy Pinoargote, who is from Ecuador and speaks Spanish, issued Jodar with a code violation warning for unsportsmanlike conduct and warned him during the exchange that his language towards the ball kid was unacceptable.
Having attempted to argue against the warning in his exchange with the umpire, Jodar accepted following his quarter-final win over Casper Ruud on Friday that he had made a mistake and apologised for losing his temper at the ball kid.
“I shouldn't have done that to the ball kid. It was my mistake,” Jodar said. “I shouldn't have treated the ball kid the way I did. I was very frustrated because how the match was going for me. It was a very close point.
“I didn't mean to hurt the feelings of the ball kid or anything, I was just frustrated with me. I couldn't control my emotions at that point of the match. I'll try not to do it again, because that's not the right way to treat the ball kids. I respect a lot their job and it wasn't anything against him or against any ball kids or umpire."
Jodar also said that the umpire made the right decision to give him the code violation and said he regretted not accepting the warning. He also said he would like to meet the ball kid in order to apologise in person.
The incident has overshadowed Jodar’s run to the Shanghai semi-finals, where he will face either Daniil Medvedev or Tommy Paul for a place in the final on Saturday. The Spaniard can enter the world’s top 10 for the first time if he wins the tournament, which would be the biggest title of his career.
Having started his first season on the ATP Tour ranked No 168 in the world, Jodar’s rapid rise has not been without controversy.
He denied pushing a ball girl at the French Open after what appeared to be an unfortunate illusion, with the ball kid instead tripping at the back of the court as Jodar walked past.
But there have been other incidents of Jodar losing his temper between points and he said he is still learning how to control his emotions on the court.
“As I am, you know, learning how to do the forehand or how to do the backhand or how to do the serve, I’m also learning how to behave on the court,” he admitted.
“I’m not perfect, I’m a human, I make mistakes, so I’ll learn from this mistake to not do it again.”