Alexander Zverev has slammed the removal of 'let' machines at the Australian Open after a subjective chair umpire call caused frustrations in his quarter-final clash.
The world No.2 survived a gruelling 7-6, 7-6, 2-6, 6-1 battle against America's Tommy Paul to confirm his spot in the Australian Open semi-finals.
The result marks the third time in the past five years that Zverev has made it to the semi-finals at Melbourne Park, but his quarter-final matchup did not come without controversy.
LIVE UPDATES: Australian Open 2025, day 10 results and highlights
A missed 'let' call by the chair umpire in the opening set tiebreak left Paul stunned as Zverev looked on as the point was called in his favour.
Frustrated by the decision, given the point confirmed the German as the winner of the set, Paul questioned how the chair umpire failed to hear the ball's contact with the net.
"If you don't hear that one or see that one you are not going to see any," Paul said.
Tommy Paul reacts against Alexander Zverev. Getty
The American admitted post-match that he was unaware that there were no automatic 'let' machines being used at the 2025 Australian Open.
His anger is not the first to be voiced so far in the tournament, with New Zealand's Erin Routliffe also questioning why the technology was not in use during her doubles match.
"We have robots everywhere and we don't have them for the net," she said.
Watch the Australian Open live & free on the 9Network & 9Now. Stan Sport is the only place to watch every match ad-free, live & on demand with centre court in 4K.
Despite opting to not voice the error made during the tiebreak, Zverev admitted that Paul's serve should have been a 'let' call.
"To be honest, the point that Tommy complained about, it was an incredibly clear 'let'," he said post-match.
"I didn't know what to do in that situation… because if there's no call and I stop playing then it's a loss of point for me. In that situation, there's nothing much you can do but continue playing.
"I think it's, to be honest, quite ridiculous. Every single corner of everything has a camera.
"We have a video review and all the high-end technologies that we can possibly have but a simple 'let' machine that we've been using for the past 25 years is not available at a grand slam.
"I don't blame the umpire too much for [Paul's 'let'] because it is tough to hear, especially if you are sitting higher up."
Alexander Zverev reaction after winning his Quarter Finals against Tommy Paul. Anadolu via Getty Images
Although the call could have seen Paul fighting for an extra point, the 27-year-old admitted the incident did not ultimately decide his fate in the match.
"It is what it is," Paul said.
"That didn't lose me the match or anything… My unforced error count was just too high today.
"And you can't have that when you're playing guys who are No.2 in the world at slams."
