Austrian tennis player Sebastian Ofner exited Australian Open qualifying after misinterpreting the rules of a final-set tie-break. Ofner prematurely celebrated what he believed was a victory against Nishesh Basavareddy at 7-1 in the third-set tie-break.
Final-set tie-breaks in Australian Open qualifying are played to 10 points. Ofner only became aware of his error after being informed by the umpire.
Following this, Basavareddy secured eight of the subsequent nine points, ultimately winning the match 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (13-11). Basavareddy then advanced to the final round of qualifying.
Basavareddy commented, "In a super [match] tie-break, you always have a chance, so I kept believing." He added, "I saw him tense up a little bit, but the balls were quite old there, so every rally was a war."
Basavareddy is scheduled to compete against Britain's George Loffhagen for a place in the Australian Open main draw.