The American Taylor Fritz struggled in the first round of the Australian Open in Melbourne on Monday and awkwardly expressed his relief, which raised doubts for many.
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After his triumph of 6-4, 6-2, 4-6 and 7-5 – with 32 aces – at the expense of Georgia’s Nikoloz Basilashvili, the ninth player in the world signed the camera near the playing surface as per tradition. However, what he wrote was interpreted in an unexpected way.
FYI, I was trying to draw a 🔒 emoji… I just forgot the very important fact that I’m bad at drawing
—Taylor Fritz (@Taylor_Fritz97) January 17, 2023
Fritz wanted to draw a padlock to indicate that it’s still anchored to the motherboard. However, some observers have judged the image to be more reminiscent of a phallus. Aware of the reactions the image elicited, Fritz was quick to justify himself.
“FYI I tried to draw a padlock emoji. I just forgot to tell you one important fact: I’m very bad at it,” he said on his Twitter account.
In the next round he meets the Australian Alexei Popyrin, holder of an invitation from the organizers.