After their first-round encounter at the ITF Junior tournament in Accra, 15-year-old French tennis player Michael Kouame slapped his conqueror, Raphael Nii Ankrah.
After dropping the first set 2-6 against Ankrah, Kouame, the No. 1 seed in the tournament, fought in the second set to force a decision.
The Ghanaian won a dramatic final set 7-6 on a tie break, eliminating the Frenchman 6-2 6-7 7-6 in the first round.
As the two players approached the net for the traditional handshake, Kouame reached out and slapped Ankrah, much to the amazement of the onlookers.
The ITF was notified right away, and the player was promptly disqualified from the competition.
Kouame, who had already been eliminated from the singles tournament after losing to Ankrah, has now been eliminated from the doubles competition as well.
In the second round, though, Ankrah will meet countryman Nii Nortey Dowuono.
