Spanish teenager Rafa Jódar denied accusations that he pushed a ball girl during a Roland Garros match, after a video of the incident went viral on social media. The 19-year-old, who reached the round of 16 in Paris after beating American Alex Michelsen in five sets on Friday, said he did not make contact with the ball girl and that the footage had been misinterpreted.
The controversy began when Jódar left the court to use the bathroom and crossed paths with the young ball girl at the exit. In the video, the girl appears to stumble as he passes, while Jódar makes an angry arm gesture. The brief clip quickly spread online, prompting speculation that he had pushed her. Supporters of the player argued that the girl may have tripped over a court cover on the ground and that the arm movement was directed toward his father, with whom he was also seen speaking from a distance in the video. The camera angle, they said, makes it difficult to determine whether there was any direct contact.
Speaking at his post-match press conference after the third-round victory over Michelsen, the Madrid-born player firmly rejected the allegations. He said the girl was walking backward and appeared to fall after encountering the court cover behind her, not because he pushed her. Jódar said he was trying to tell his father to hand him items he would need after going to the bathroom and that the ball girl was simply in the way as she moved back. He insisted that he never touched her at any point.
Jódar also expressed respect for ball girls and boys, acknowledging the difficulty of their work, especially in hot conditions. He said he appreciated their effort and stressed that he would never intentionally push one of them. “I did not touch her,” he said, according to the AFP report.
The 19-year-old’s response came as he continues one of the strongest runs of his young career at Roland Garros. Ranked 29th in the world and regarded as one of Spain’s most promising tennis talents, Jódar has advanced to the fourth round and is scheduled to face fellow Spaniard Pablo Carreño on Sunday. The match will be his first appearance in the round of 16 at a Grand Slam, adding to the attention surrounding both his performance and the viral incident.
The episode has sparked debate online about the interpretation of short video clips, especially when filmed from a distance and without a full view of the surrounding context. While the footage led to accusations against the player, Jódar’s explanation centered on a collision-free stumble and a misunderstood gesture during a tense moment of play.
