Accusations are flying after Harriet Dart defeated fellow Briton Katie Boulter in a Wimbledon match full of controversy.
Boulter, the partner of Aussie Alex de Minaur, went down 4-6 6-1 7-6 (10-8), but only after Dart became emotional and tearful.
Dart went 6-2 down in the tiebreaker and then started to weep, which in turned sparked a Boulter meltdown.
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De Minaur had rushed from his match to Court No.1 to watch his girlfriend, but she had suddenly become rattled.
He then raced from a row in front of the press seats to Boulter’s player box to support her.
But after the tears, Dart then won eight of the last 10 points to knock out the 32nd seed.
There is no love lost between Boulter and Dart, who have a fierce rivalry.
They were born just days apart and have often faced off against each other as they compete for the hearts of their country and the No.1 national ranking.
And those hearts were clearly on Boulter’s side after the match.
“Harriet Dart crying at the back of the court when she’s down in the final set tie break to blatantly put Boulter off is criminal,” one fan said on X (formerly Twitter).
“Abysmal sportsmanship.”
Another said: “Convinced those tears from Dart were crocodile tears to mess with Boulter’s head. To her credit … it’s worked.”
Later, Boulter was hailed for her class as she spoke about her Aussie boyfriend.
She said de Minaur had told her that one match did not define her career.
‘I’m lucky to have that support,” she told the media after the match.
“One match doesn’t define my career. That’s the first thing he (Alex) said to me when I got off the court.
“He knows what he’s talking about. It’s not his first rodeo.
“He’s been through it all before, and I’m lucky to have that support.”