Tennis star apologises for brutal comment she made about French opponent to umpire

A tennis star was forced to apologise after a brutal comment made to the chair umpire about her opponent.

On Tuesday, Great Britain's number four ranked player, Harriet Dart, took on French player Lois Boisson in the last 32 of the Open de Rouen in France.

The 28-year-old Brit fell to a 6-0, 6-3, straight sets defeat and there was a controversial moment in the second set.

During a changeover, Dart was heard making a comment to the chair umpire about Boisson.

She was heard saying: "Can you tell her to wear deodorant? She's smelling really bad."

As expected, Dart received criticism on social media as fans reacted to her comment.

After the match, Dart took to social media and issued a statement of apology.

She began: "Hey everyone. I want to apologise for what I said on court today, it was a heat-of-the-moment comment that I truly regret.

"That's not how I want to carry myself and I take full responsibility. I have a lot of respect for Lois and how she competed today."

Dart continued: "I'll learn from this and move forward. Harriet."

However, Boisson seemed to see the funny side of things as she posted an edited picture of her in action with a Dove deodorant can.

She wrote: "@dove apparently need a collab."

Dart is currently ranked 110 in the world and was part of the Team GB squad which managed to seal a place in the Billie Jean King Cup finals.

Despite being without former US Open winner Emma Raducanu, the team secured a place in the next round after beating Germany and the Netherlands.

So far in her career, Dart's best Grand Slam performance came in the 2019 and 2024 Wimbledon championships, where she reached the third round.

In September 2024, the London-born player reached a career-high ranking of 70 but has since fallen outside the top 100.

Dart's compatriot, Sonay Kartal was also beaten at the Open de Rouen after losing 6-3, 6-2 to Varvara Gracheva.