Romanian team coach Ilie Nastase is under investigation by the ITF after having a meltdown during Saturday’s Fed Cup match between his country and Great Britain, leading to a suspension in the play of the match and his ejection.
Nastase was told to leave the court because of his unsportsmanlike conduct as he was already warned twice about his behavior. Great Britain captain Johanna Konta had complained about shouts from the crowd during play , leading to an unsportsmanlike conduct warning.
Nastase didn’t like the warning and went on a tirade with Konta up a set and down 1-2 in the second against Sorana Cirstea. He cursed at Great Britain’s players and dropped the F-word on them and an official. He was ejected.
Nastase’s abuse of Konta led her to begin crying. The match was suspended for around 20 minutes until she was able to resume playing. She eventually came back to play, apologizing to the crowd.
The break in play bothered Cirstea, who lost the second set despite leading prior to the break.
“Why did Konta start crying and saying she felt threatened at 3-1?” Cirstea said via The Guardian. “I’ve been called much worse all over the world … Just because she is crying the match is stopped? That is not fair to me.”
The ITF issued this statement about Nastase’s ejection:
The ITF has issued the following statement regarding Ilie Nastase pic.twitter.com/yiYP1DycCz
— ITF (@ITF_Tennis) April 22, 2017
The ITF later said Nastase was being investigated:
ITF President David Haggerty has released this statement following the actions of Ilie Nastase at the @FedCup tie in Romania pic.twitter.com/vqPEBApMLt
— ITF (@ITF_Tennis) April 22, 2017
Here’s video of Nastase being ejected:
Nastase already was in hot water for some racist comments he made upon learning Serena Williams was pregnant, saying, “Let’s see what color it has. Chocolate with milk?” regarding the baby. He then berated the reporter who reported about those comments Friday.
In the same press conference where his comments about Serena’s baby were heard, Nastase also was inappropriate with Anne Keothavong, asking her for her hotel room number.
Nastase was also filmed going after journalist Eleanor Crooks, who recorded his Serena Williams baby comments a day earlier.
My second run-in with Ilie Nastase. He then called me ugly off camera, just for good measure pic.twitter.com/pt2begOpTx
— Eleanor Crooks (@EleanorcrooksPA) April 22, 2017
Nastase, 70, is a former No. 1-ranked player in the world who won two grand slams. He was known during his playing days for his tantrums.
