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- Johanna Konta was dumped out of the Wimbledon Championships quarterfinal Tuesday, then clapped back at a journalist who asked a question she did not like.
- The journalist questioned Konta’s shot-choice at critical moments in the match, then defended the question by saying she is someone who presumably wants to learn, improve, and win a Grand Slam one day.
- "Please don’t patronize me," Konta said. "You’re being disrespectful."
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Johanna Konta fired back at a "disrespectful" and "patronizing" reporter for picking on her after she was dumped out of the Wimbledon Championships quarterfinal.
The British No.1 women’s singles player raced into a commanding 4-1 lead in the very first set against the unseeded Czech athlete Barbora Strycova on Centre Court on Tuesday.
However, Konta quickly unraveled, losing 7-6 (7-5), 6-1 in an error-filled performance where she was reportedly heard swearing at herself in frustration.
Associated Press
The Independent’s Tom Kershaw wrote that Konta’s pursuit of "highlight-reel winners" was ultimately her downfall against an opponent who capitalized on the Briton’s 33 unforced errors.
One journalist pressed Konta about this at the post-match press conference. "You hit a smash at the net which you hit straight to her, you hit a double fault, and missed a drive volley … do you not have to look at yourself about how you cope with these big points … there were key points where you could perhaps have done better," he said.
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"Is that in your professional tennis opinion?" Konta clapped back. "I don’t think you need to pick on me in a harsh way. I’m very open with you guys and I say how I feel out there. If you don’t want to accept that answer or don’t want to agree with it, that’s fine. I still believe in the tennis that I play and the way I competed. I don’t have much else to say to your question."
The same journalist said: "I’m just asking you as someone who presumably wants to learn from this and win a Grand Slam one day."
Konta responded by saying: "Please don’t patronize me. In the way you’re asking your question, you’re being quite disrespectful and you’re patronizing me."
Watch Konta’s press conference in full below:
Though Konta failed to win a set against Strycova she had performed well earlier in Wimbledon having come from one set down against Sloane Stephens in the third round and Petra Kvitova in the fourth, to win two sets to one in both matches.
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Her inability to retain the consistency from earlier in the tournament and overcome a quarterfinalist she was expected to beat, bears similarities to her French Open journey last month.
Konta dominated Stephens in the clay major quarterfinal but then got knocked out of the tournament by Marketa Vondrousova, an unseeded underdog, in the very next match.
But Konta was defiant in the Wimbledon press conference. "I’m a professional competitor who did her best today," she said. "And that’s all there is to that."
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See Also:
- Serena Williams said she decided to ‘stay down and let Andy do the running’ after taking a tumble during their first ever mixed doubles match
- Serena Williams says she’s a ‘big fan’ of 15-year-old ‘Coco’ Gauff who is ‘capable and ready’ for Wimbledon glory
- ‘Coco’ Gauff is playing at a top-20 level but renowned coach thinks Serena Williams will win Wimbledon
SEE ALSO: Roger Federer shared a peek inside the Wimbledon clubhouse in a ‘Cribs’-style video with Vogue
Source: Business Insider – feedback@businessinsider.com (Alan Dawson)