The French Open has banned alcohol from the stands in a bid to crack down on fan behavior at Roland Garros.
The first week of the tournament was marked by a noisy atmosphere and there was an incident on Wednesday when Belgian David Goffin claimed a spectator spit chewing gum at him during his five-set victory against Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
The same day, world number 1 Iga Swiatek asked fans to be quiet during points in her thrilling victory over Naomi Osaka.
Tournament director Amélie Mauresmo also said security would be improved and referees would be instructed to be stricter with the crowd during the match.
“Alcohol was until now allowed in the stands. Now that’s over,” Mauresmo said. “The referees are really going to be even stricter to show more respect for the players and the game.
“It’s something we’re not going to tolerate, overriding those two things. That’s for sure. So the referees have a pretty big role in this.
“And certainly in terms of security, we’re going to try to see what people can cause (trouble), because I think it’s a few individuals at any given time that overstep.”
Mauresmo said the person who allegedly spit gum at Goffin had not been identified and no spectators had been kicked out of the tournament so far.
She added: “We tried to gather information yesterday about what happened and how we can do things – so these new rules are from this morning. So we’ll see how it goes.”
David Goffin says many people have complained about fan behavior at Roland Garros
Goffin: Many people complain
Fan noise is nothing new in tennis, as players usually find it difficult to shout between serves or just before a serve.
However, Goffin – a veteran of the sport – believes it has gone too far and is “starting to get ridiculous”.
“A lot of people are complaining. A lot of referees think there’s a lot of disrespect,” he added.
“This is repeated a lot in the locker room and among the ATP authorities. We are going to have to do something about it.
“I think it only happens in France. At Wimbledon, obviously, there’s not that. Nor in Australia either. At the US Open, it’s still rather calm. Here, it’s is a really unhealthy atmosphere.”
