French Open chaos and rules explained after star kicks ball at line judge but isn't disqualified

Italian tennis star Lorenzo Musetti feared he would be disqualified amidst chaos at the French Open after kicking a ball near a line judge that ended up hitting them.

During his quarter-final match against Frances Tiafoe, Musetti kicked a ball towards the back fence, which rebounded onto the shoulder of the line judge.

Fortunately for the eighth seed at Roland Garros, he only received a code violation warning for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Musetti overcame the potential distraction to reach the French Open semi-finals for the first time, winning 6-2, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2. He will now face Spain's Carlos Alcaraz.

He said: "“Honestly it was really unlucky coincidence. I was a little bit, honestly, scared, because I really didn’t want to harm nobody, of course.

"So I immediately went to the line umpire, and I of course said sorry. I apologise to everyone.

"It was right to have a warning, but I think the umpire saw that there was no intention about that, and that’s why he probably just let me continue my game.”

What are the rules?

Musetti's opponent Tiafoe was unsurprisingly not happy with the call to not disqualify his opponent, saying: "Obviously he did that and nothing happened.

"I think that’s comical, but it is what it is. Nothing happened, so there’s nothing really to talk about. Obviously it’s not consistent, so it is what it is.”

On TNT Sports Tim Henman explained that Musetti could have been disqualified for his action.

He said: "By the letter of the law if you hit a ball away, kick a ball away in frustration and it hits a ball boy or a line judge or the umpire, that can be a disqualification.

"And so, when you look at that, the umpire could have interpreted that as a disqualification. However, if Musetti was disqualified for that, I think Musetti would feel very unlucky and very aggrieved.

"But yeah, when you're kicking a ball away, you've either got to be a better footballer and kick it in the right direction or you are risking something like that."

Have players been disqualified for hitting line judges with tennis balls?

Yes, including some of the game's biggest stars during major competitions.

Novak Djokovic, who holds the men's record for the most tennis grand slam titles with 24, was disqualified from the 2020 US Open for a similar incident.

In a fourth-round match against Spain's Pablo Carreno Busta, he took a ball from his pocket and hit it behind him with his racket, striking a line judge on her throat.

Frances Tiafoe says Lorenzo Musetti not being penalized for this was comical

“He did that & nothing happened. I think that's comical. It is what it is. Nothing happened. So there's nothing to talk about. Obviously it's not consistent. It is what it is.”

pic.twitter.com/kdXcokmAeR

— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) June 3, 2025

An apologetic Djokovic was disqualified, knocking out the pre-tournament favourite.

And players have also been defaulted at the French Open in the past. Just two years ago in the women's doubles third round, Miyu Kato and her partner Aldila Sutjiadi were kicked out.

Between points, Kato hit a ball with her racket down to the other end of the court, inadvertently striking a ball girl.

The child was left distraught and the doubles pair were disqualified.