Australian Open debutant Sonay Kartal robbed in ‘weird’ electronic line-call moment

A British tennis player has shared her frustration with the sport’s electronic line-calling system after being robbed of a point early in her first-round defeat on debut at the Australian Open.

Sonay Kartal missed out on a date with defending champion Aryna Sabalenka after Spain’s world No.52 Jessica Bouzas Maneiro claimed a 6-1 7-6 (7-5) victory on Sunday.

Kartal threatened to extend the contest to a third and deciding set but things weren’t going her way almost from the start.

The world No.87 held serve to open the match but lost a point through no real fault of her own when Bouzas Maneiro sent down her first effort in the second game.

Kartal returned with a forehand but heard a line call over the PA and gave up on the point.

Bouzas Maneiro did the same, hitting a light backhand over the net before immediately lining up in her service stance.

Suddenly, though, the chair umpire delivered a score update: “15-love.”

The line call had, in fact, come from a nearby court and at the worst possible time for Kartal.

Both players’ heads had been turned by the umpire’s announcement and Kartal raised her arms to question just what had happened.

“The call came as out, the electronic line call. What is going on there?” Chris Bradnam said on the European commentary feed.

“I think it was from another court. That’s surprised everybody. That was weird. What are the chances of a call coming from another court and (at) that exact moment?”

Bouzas Maneiro turned to receive a fresh ball before offering a shrug to her team, accepting the point without offering a replay.

Kartal opted against pressing her case with the umpire and play continued on.

Bouzas Maneiro eventually held serve and remarkably kicked on to win the next eight games.

Kartal was disappointed with her performance but also remained aggrieved by the system.

The Australian Open has used electronic line calling since 2021, with COVID speeding up the inevitable transition.

But players are clearly still adjusting to the lack of a physical presence and the pre-recorded voices.

“‘It is one of the harder things I find with not having line judges — they all sound the same,” Kartal said.

“I was like ‘God’. I think on ours the sound of his voice was male, so I was just listening out for the male voice instead of the female voice.”