French Open player Adolfo Daniel Vallejo has sparked controversy after claiming a woman should not have umpired his marathon second-round defeat to French teenager Moise Kouame at Roland Garros.
The Paraguayan made the remarks following a dramatic five-set encounter on Court Suzanne Lenglen on Thursday, with 17-year-old Kouame backed by a passionate home crowd throughout the contest.
In what proved to be one of the longest and most entertaining matches of the tournament so far, Kouame battled to a 6-3, 7-5, 3-6, 2-6, 7-6 (10-8) victory after four hours and 56 minutes.
However, Vallejo was left frustrated by the officiating during the match and suggested Brazilian umpire Ana Carvalho faced an impossible task attempting to manage the atmosphere inside the stadium.
Speaking to Clay magazine after the defeat, Vallejo claimed the match required a male umpire due to the challenges posed by the partisan crowd.
"This sort of match needs to be umpired by a man, it's very difficult for a woman to do it," he said.
"It has to be refereed by a man, because it's a very demanding crowd and you need a lot of strength to go against the crowd."
French Open player Adolfo Daniel Vallejo has sparked controversy after claiming a woman should not have umpired his marathon second-round defeat to French teenager Moise Kouame at Roland Garros | GETTY
Adolfo Daniel Vallejo claimed the match required a male umpire due to the challenges posed by the partisan crowd
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Vallejo's comments are likely to attract significant attention given Carvalho's reputation as one of the sport's most experienced officials.
The world No 200 also voiced concerns about the amount of time he believed Kouame was being allowed between points as the Frenchman mounted his comeback in front of a vocal home audience.
Under tennis rules, players are generally permitted 25 seconds between points, with a visible countdown clock used to enforce the limit.
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French Open winners since 2000 | GETTY/GB NEWSUmpires can, however, exercise discretion over when the clock begins, particularly when crowd noise delays the restart of play.
Vallejo felt those circumstances favoured his opponent.
"The crowd was very out of line, but I understand they are supporting their compatriot," he added.
"It's quite an intense crowd and that's why I was prepared.
"I already knew it would be like that and, to be honest, it didn't harm me, but rather strengthened him.
"I think he took up a lot of time on many occasions, lying on the floor or stalling.
Moise Kouame is through to the third round of the French Open
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"And it's not normal for the crowd to be shouting for a full minute without any play.
"In a match where the physical aspect matters so much, if you give a player a lot of time, he's obviously going to take advantage of it."
Kouame, one of French tennis' brightest prospects, eventually came through a gripping contest after almost five hours on court, with the teenager feeding off the energy of the home crowd to secure a memorable victory.
He'll now face Alejandro Tabilo in the third round on Saturday.