Elias Ymer destroys a camera at Salzburg Challenger, only gets a warning

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: An ATP player loses his cool during a crucial point in the match, lets out his frustrations in a dangerous and reckless way, and then gets away with only a slap on the wrist.

That’s what happened (yet again) on Tuesday, when the latest episode in an ongoing epidemic of unchecked tennis rage hit a Challenger event in Salzburg.

Playing on clay courts, Elias Ymer was deep in the first set against tricky lefty Corentin Moutet when he struck an unforced error, handing his opponent a break point at 5-4. When the 26-year-old Swede was tossed a ball for his next serve, he instead smashed the ball toward the back of the court—striking a TV camera and shattering its lens in the process.

The incident prompted an immediate suspension of the match, as officials had to clear the court of glass and eventually replaced the camera altogether. According to reports, Ymer received a code violation and a warning for his behavior, and was allowed to continue.

All credit to Moutet, though. The Frenchman kept his cool throughout the situation and closed out the opening set when the match resumed, going on to complete a 6-4, 6-3 victory. He’ll now face Ymer’s younger brother, 23-year-old Mikael, in the round of 16.

But considering the ATP declared a “stricter stance” against on-court outbursts earlier this year, it’s pretty shocking that Ymer was allowed to continue at all with only a perfunctory warning. Especially taking into account that the situation resulted in broken glass on clay courts—a dangerous combination for anyone playing or working on that court, including other players, ball kids and officials.