The Madrid Open is facing criticism after Argentine tennis player Marco Trungelliti accused the crowd of racist abuse during his first-round match against Spain’s Daniel Merida Aguilar. The 36-year-old said fans crossed the line and claimed tournament officials did very little to stop it. The incident happened during a tense three-set match at the 2026 Madrid Open, where Trungelliti entered the main draw as a lucky loser after losing in qualifying, only to face Merida Aguilar again.While the match was highly competitive, the focus quickly shifted to the crowd’s behavior, which Trungelliti later described as hostile and racist. He lost the first set but came back to win the second and force a deciding set. In the final set, Merida Aguilar saved two match points, pushed the contest into a tie-break, and won after two hours and 44 minutes. During that set, Trungelliti argued with spectators and complained to the supervisor about constant booing and heckling from the home crowd.
Marco Trungelliti says Madrid Open officials did little after racist abuse complaint
After the match, Marco Trungelliti shared his feelings on Instagram and did not hold back. He said the behavior from the crowd was unacceptable and called it racist from the beginning.He wrote, “To finish with last night’s matter. Was it shameful? Yes. Was it racist? Yes. Disrespect from the start? Yes. Did they do something about it? Not much. Do I care? No.”His strong words quickly drew attention across the tennis world, especially because the Madrid Open has already faced criticism in previous years.In 2024, Fabio Fognini openly complained about player hotel conditions. He posted a photo of a small single bed on Instagram and sarcastically questioned the tournament’s hospitality. In 2023, Coco Gauff criticized the event after she and Jessica Pegula were not allowed to give a speech after finishing runners-up in women’s doubles.That same year, Iga Swiatek also spoke about scheduling problems during her singles runner-up speech. With Trungelliti’s latest accusation, questions around player treatment at the Madrid Open have once again returned.