Tennis Tarango apologises for tantrums

Tennis

Tarango apologises for tantrums

Jeff Tarango has apologised for his Wimbledon tantrums - after a week in which he ran up record fines and suspensions. The 26-year-old Californian said: "I apologise to my fans and to fans of the game of tennis. I'm not the first athlete to lose his cool under fire, and I hope that just as British Open golf champion John Daly and the great John McEnroe have learnt from their mistakes, I will too. My goal is to be the best tennis player I can be, and the best person I can be." Tarango was fined pounds 13,000 and suspended from tour events for three weeks by the ATP Tour just a day after the Grand Slam Committee had banned him from two major tournaments, including next year's Wimbledon, and added pounds 18,000 to the record pounds 10,000 fine imposed by the All England Club immediately after his outburst. Tarango walked off court during his third-round Wimbledon match against Germany's Alexander Mronz on 1 July, accusing the French umpire Bruno Rebeuh of being corrupt and charging him with favouring certain players. He is appealing against all the sanctions and will be allowed to play in the US Open, which begins tomorrow. He also defended his French wife, who slapped the umpire following her husband's emotional outburst. Tarango said: "If anyone is to blame for what happened at Wimbledon, it's me - not my wife."