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The photographer of the center of a tennis star with the collapse of the US Open 2025 says that he is a “victim and completely innocent” because his diploma for the tournament was revoked.
Selcuk Acar, an independent and photojournalist journalist, spoke with the Daily Mail after having lost Daniil Medvedev on the field of the Louis Armstrong stadium while facing Benjamin Bonzi in the first round on Sunday evening.
An incident occurred during the third set when Acar rose to the field with the Bonzi service. Bonzi missed the first service, but the match was arrested as Acra entered the court between attempts.
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Daniil Medvedev, from Russia, gestures after a photographer ran on the field in a match against Benjamin Bonzi, France, in the first round of the American open tennis championships, Sunday August 24, 2025 in New York. (AP photo / Adam Hunger)
Chair Referee Greg Allensworth gave Bonzi another first service, who at the time was for the match point against the 13th seeded Medvedev.
Medvedev lost it in Allensworth, and a delay of almost seven minutes ensued with the two men going back and forth on the ground.
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“This incident has already turned into lynching, and although I am innocent, I suffered a lot,” said Acar at the point of sale. “If there is a camera there, if it is watched, it will show that I have returned to the official twice and that I did not enter.”
Acar added that a security manager said to him: “The match is arrested”, before participating in the court. He also said that he had covered many high -level events during his career, including presidential visits to Europe and NATO summits. ACAR also said that she worked at the FIFA World Cup.
“I am not a photojournalist that can [make] Such a mistake, “he said.
However, the United States Tennis Association revoked ACAR’s skills titles for the tournament.
“The photographer had been invited to stay in place by American open safety,” they said in a statement, according to the New York Post.
Daniil Medvedev, from Russia, below right, reacts next to the chair referee, Greg Allensworth, on the left, after a photographer ran on the field during a match against Benjamin Bonzi, France, in the first round of the American tennis championships on Sunday, August 24, 2025, in New York. (AP photo / Adam Hunger)
“The photographer did not take these instructions into account and incorrectly entered the court between the matches at match matters. The chair referee also asked the photographer to sit immediately, and these instructions were also ignored. The photographer’s skills titles were dismissed for US Open Open.”
Meanwhile, Medvedev was going to ballistic on Allensworth and also tried to involve the crowd. With his arms raised in the air, he encouraged them to huer.
“He wants to go home guys,” he said Medvedev. “He doesn’t like to be here. He’s paid by the match, not on time.”
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After the match, Medvedev said that it was not Acar’s situation that bored him, but rather the decision to redo the first Bonzi service.
“I was not angry with the photographer. I was angry with the decision,” said Medvedev. “The photographer’s delay was probably four and a half seconds. I’m not sure that it is enough for a (first) to serve.”
Bonzi, on the other hand, thought that his opponent crossed the line.
“I mean, the rule is the rule. The guy went to the field between two services,” said Bonzi. “I mean, this is not my call to say the first service. And I think, yes, Daniil started, and he put oil on the fire.”
Daniil Medvedev reacts after losing the first two sets against Benjamin Bonzi in France in their first men’s first match on the first day of US 2025 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on August 24, 2025 in the Flushing district of Queens Borough in New York City. (Elsa / Getty Images)
While Medvedev was able to recover the third set, and the fourth, Bonzi was able to put it in the fifth set to ensure the massive upheaval of the Russian veteran.
The Frenchman won the match 6-3, 7-5, 6-7 (5), 0-6, 6-4 on Medvedev to go to the second round, where he will face the American Marcos Giron.
