Yulia Pughtseva, a Kazakhstani tennis player, was forced to apologize publicly after losing to Jasmine Paolini in the third round. She was attacked on social media over a rude interaction she had with a U.S. Open Ball Girl.

Social media videos showed an awkward moment when Putintseva gave the ball girl the cold shoulder in the second set during Saturday’s 6-3,6-4 loss.

Putintseva, visibly frustrated, stood motionless while the ball girl tossed two tennis balls at her. She let each ball bounce in her before attempting to catch the third.

The crowd booed loudly and social media reacted even more fiercely.

Ugly moment in the Putintseva vs Paolini match at the US Open.

The ball girl tries tossing the ball and Yulia watches it bounce on the ground without moving.

So many ball kids look up to these athletes. Let’s try to treat them kinder.

(via @MerThomp)pic.twitter.com/WaVzNcbb6R

— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) September 1, 2024

“Everyone should equally respect ball kids. They are also working hard. Respect,” one person wrote in a post on X.

Another added: “Completely disrespectful behavior, she is an awful role model.”

Another post stated: “You can tell much about a person by the way they treat their subordinates.”

Putintseva apologized on her social media after the criticism.

She said that she was “deeply in thought” at the time of the awkward exchange and that her anger was directed towards her performance.

“I apologize to the ballgirl for how I was when she gave me balls. It was not her. “I was so pissed off at myself for not winning the match from the breakpoint, and I got lost in my emotions that I forgot to pay attention to what was going on or who was giving me the ball. All of the ball kids were doing an amazing job as usual at the open.”

Putintseva lost to Jasmine Paolini in the third round of the U.S. Open. She will now face Karolina Manyova in the Round of 16.