People divided over 'most Wimbledon warning ever heard' as umpire forced to address crowd

Wimbledon watchers were left polarised by an umpire's hilarious reprimand to the crowd during the first-round match between Amanda Anisimova and Yulia Putintseva last week.

With tennis stars laser focused on Wimbledon glory, the last thing they need is unruly spectators distracting them from their game - but it has been known to happen.

Who could forget Nick Kyrgios raging that a 'drunk' woman was putting him off during the 2022 final against Novak Djokovic.

And last year, Djokovic hit out the Wimbledon crowd for 'booing' him in his face off with Danish star Holger Rune.

Last Monday (30 June), American player Anisimova took aim at one thing the crowd were doing which was 'definitely a bit distracting' when she was trying to 'focus as much as I can'.

The umpire even had to intervene with a warning to the crowd, which a commentator dubbed 'the most Wimbledon warning you've ever heard'.

Out on Court 15 of the grassy Grand Slam tennis competition, Anisimova was just about to serve when a familiar noise emanated from the crowd: the sound of a champagne cork being popped.

Immediately jumping in after Anisimova's complaint, the umpire said: "Thank you ladies and gentlemen, if you could avoid opening bottles of champagne when the players are about to serve."

Reacting to a clip of the warning, social media users were both amused and taken aback.

"As Amanda Anisimova is about to serve, someone in the crowd pops a champagne bottle. Amanda: 'Why are you opening it right now?' Only at Wimbledon," read one of the tweets.

"The umpire legitimately had to announce 'please don’t open champagne bottles before the players are about to serve,'" laughed someone else.

"The only place where a rogue champagne cork can interrupt elite sport and no one bats an eyelid. Wimbledon, you posh lunatic," wrote another fan.

"She was about to serve and had every right to stop her motion and ask that question. Let’s go Amanda," argued a fourth viewer.

Anisimova said after the game, which she won: "At some point, I was, like, can everybody just do it on the changeover? It was definitely a bit distracting. Then again, I have to just adjust, try and focus as much as I can.

"But, yeah, it can be a little loud when people are doing their external things, but I love the atmosphere and the energy and the crowd supporting me, so it's been good."

Elsewhere in that match, Kazakhstan player Putintseva asked for a separate spectator to be removed from the stands, accusing him of acting 'crazy' and 'dangerous'.

"Can you take him out, I am not going to continue playing until he leaves," she told the umpire. "These people are dangerous, they are crazy."

A spokesperson for the All England Lawn Tennis Club revealed in a statement: "Following a complaint about the behaviour of a spectator at the match on Court 15, the chair umpire informed security and the matter was dealt with."

Speaking to the BBC afterwards, Anisimova claimed the unruly fan had been saying something when her rival was just about to hit a serve.

Just yesterday (July 6), the battle between the UK's Cameron Norrie and Chile's Nicolas Jarry took a heated turn too.

According to Nicolas, who ultimately lost after an impressive two-set comeback, Cameron spent too long bouncing the ball before whacking it over the net.

He asked umpire Eva Asredaki-Moore: "What is the rule there? The problem is, is it normal to do that when it affects the other player?

"You have to intervene there or I have to suck it. He can perfectly stop doing it, it's not a nervous tick. It's something he can control."

Eva appreciated the athlete's perspective, but she could only intervene if she felt 'there is a reason to step in'.

"I don't want to force you into anything," Nicolas noted. "I just want to do what the rules say. And if there is not a rule, then tell me and I cannot do anything about it."