Spanish tennis player Alejandro Davidovich Fokina faced an unexpected situation at the French Open. After a challenging five-set win in the first round, his coach Mariano Puerta left Paris suddenly. Davidovich Fokina, who ranks 23rd, had shared a meal with Puerta before the coach reported feeling unwell and returning to his hotel. Hours later, Puerta informed Davidovich Fokina that he would not continue, leaving for Miami without notifying the rest of the coaching team.
“He did that a couple of times before with other players,” Davidovich Fokina remarked during a press conference following his second-round loss to Thiago Agustín Tirante. “It seems normal for him.”
Puerta, a previous runner-up at Roland Garros, carries a controversial history in tennis due to two doping bans. In 2005, shortly after reaching the French Open final, he tested positive for etilefrine, resulting in an eight-year suspension. This ban was reduced to two years after he admitted to lying in court about the details, citing ginseng and caffeine pills as the true source of the banned substance, rather than water used by his then-wife for medication.
Having tested positive for an anabolic steroid in 2003, Puerta retired in 2009. Reflecting on his decision to hire Puerta, Davidovich Fokina said, “I thought he was a very good person. It was my fault to hire him.” Puerta has not publicly addressed Davidovich Fokina’s comments.