"Refute the points Ons Jabeur raised instead of gaslighting" - Fans miffed at Madrid Open director Feliciano Lopez's response to sexism complaints

Madrid Open's tournament director Feliciano Lopez recently came under criticism from tennis fans for his response to sexism complaints raised by Ons Jabeur.

This year, the Madrid Open faced controversy when Australian doubles tennis player Ellen Perez revealed that women doubles players were not allowed to practice on the on-site court. Instead, they were given an off-site court, which had vastly different conditions from the courts in the tournament.

During a press conference at the Madrid Open, Ons Jabeur expressed her disappointment with the treatment of women players in tournaments in Madrid, Rome, and Europe in general. She emphasized that women players deserve equal treatment and that they are not asking for more than they deserve.

"I feel like we have a long way, especially here in Madrid and in Rome - in Europe in general. I feel they need to respect women more and they need to respect how we are playing. I think we deserve better. It's not like we are not doing any effort and we are asking for more than what we deserve, for sure," Jabeur said.

In response to Jabeur's criticism, Madrid Open director Feliciano Lopez acknowledged that mistakes were made last year, but they have since been corrected. He defended the tournament by highlighting that they were the first to offer equal prize money to both men and women.

Lopez believed it was unfair for Jabeur to suggest that the Madrid Open does not treat men and women equally.

"Yeah, I think we did a few things last year that, I mean, shouldn't happen. I have to say and we learn from our mistakes, but I have to say that we were the first tournament to pay the same price money to women and men and so I don't think it's very fair for someone to think that we are not men and women equally, so we're doing a great job, I think in that matter," Lopez said.

However, tennis fans were not satisfied with Feliciano Lopez's response and expressed their anger on social media. A fan felt that Lopez should have addressed Ons Jabeur's points instead of "gaslighting" her.

"Refute the points she raised instead of gaslighting her you bih," the fan posted.

“Everyone’s happy” they’re clearly not tho 😭 ," a fan posted.

While another stated that the Spaniard should have tried to learn and fix the accusations which Ons Jabeur made instead of disagreeing with her.

"Would have liked to hear him say, I’ve not spoken to Ons [Jabeur] so I’m curious to learn more about why she feels that way, instead of just disagreeing and focusing on last year," a fan wrote.

Another fan stated:

Some fans pointed out the irony of Feliciano Lopez responding to sexism complaints with a microphone, considering that last year, women's doubles finalists, Coco Gauff, Jessica pegula, Victoria Azarenka and Beatriz Haddad Maia were not allowed to address the crowd.

"See how they gave you a microphone and let you speak? Remember what you didn’t do last year?" a fan posted.

"Some woman needs to put this man into his place @vika7 @DonnaVekic," another fan posted.

One fan stated that it was problematic of Madrid Open to investigate the problem faced by WTA players themselves and then conclude that there were no problems.

"We investigated ourselves and found that we've done no wrong," a fan wrote.

Ons Jabeur reached the quarterfinals at Madrid Open 2024

Ons Jabeur at the 2024 Mutua Madrid Open

Ons Jabeur had reached the quarterfinals at the 2024 Madrid Open. She began her campaign in the second round after receiving a first-round bye.

In her opening match, Jabeur faced a tough challenge against Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, ultimately emerging victorious with a score of 6-4, 5-7, 6-3. She continued her winning streak by defeating Leylah Fernandez 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 in the third round.The former World No. 2 then defeated Jelena Ostapenka 6-0, 6-4 in the fourth round to secure her place in the last eight.

However, Jabeur's campaign came to an end in the quarterfinals when she was defeated 6-0, 5-7, 1-6 by Madison Keys.

Ons Jabeur had previously claimed the singles title at the Madrid Open in 2022 by defeating Jessica Pegula 7-5, 0-6, 6-2 in the championship match.