A defending Wimbledon men’s doubles champion has been handed the largest fine so far at this year’s championships after allegedly verbally abusing a member of staff.
Essex-born Henry Patten, 29, is appealing against the $12,500 (£9,200) penalty that was dished out on 29 June owing to an incident at an off-site training ground.
Wimbledon has handed out fines totalling $50,000 to 12 players so far this year, more than double the $20,000 dished out during the same period at last year’s championships. The fines for both years include the qualifying period and the first week of Wimbledon.
This year’s second highest fine went to the French player Adrian Mannarino, who displayed unsportsmanlike conduct during his second round win over Valentin Royer. Other players this year were fined for audible obscenities, abuse of rackets and equipment, and also unsportsmanlike conduct.
Over the years, some of the sport’s biggest stars including Serena Williams and Nick Kyrgios have been fined for rocking the genteel atmosphere of the tournament.
