Irina-Camelia Begu fined $10,000 for racket toss at French Open

Irina-Camelia Begu on Friday was fined $10,000 by the French Tennis Federation after she threw her racket and it bounced off the clay and into the stands during a match at the French Open on Thursday.

Begu, a 31-year-old Romanian who is ranked 63rd, was cited for unsportsmanlike conduct during the third set of her victory against 30th-seeded Ekaterina Alexandrova in the second round at Court 13.

After dropping a point, Begu walked to the sideline and chucked her racket, which flew behind chair umpire Anis Ressaissi's seat, landing among spectators sitting courtside. There were gasps from fans and a child could be heard crying.

Tournament referee Remy Azemar said the equipment «brushed a young spectator,'' who „turned out to be OK.'' Begu apologized for the incident and took pictures with the child after the match.

Alexandrova, who purposely hit a tennis ball over the stands during the next changeover in protest for Begu not being given a stiffer penalty, ended up losing the match and called for a change in the rules of tennis to discourage this from happening again.

“So I can do that too?» Alexandrova shouted at the umpire after hitting the ball. She, too, was given a code violation.

Begu, the world No. 63, will face France's Leolia Jeanjean in the third round at Roland Garros.

ESPN's Tom Hamilton and The Associated Press contributed to this report.