Jannik Sinner entered his Wimbledon clash against Jan-Lennard Struff as the clear favorite. And the Italian lived up to the billing, by cruising to a straight-sets victory on Court 1 to book his place in the SW19 semifinals. But the match was far from routine, as BBC commentator John McEnroe suddenly accused Struff of breaking one of the unusual rules, turning a straightforward contest into a talking point.

“The ball fell out of his pocket,” the American said while commenting on the BBC. “First [time it happens] they play a let; then second time he loses the point. Let’s see if he did it on purpose… no,” the American explained. 

“They should go to video replay in the future and see if the person’s done it deliberately,” McEnroe explained.

The bizarre moment came early in the second set when Sinner had a break point on his opponent’s serve. However, the spare ball slipped out mid-rally from the German, forcing the umpire to call a let and replay the point. This gave the 36-year-old another chance to stay in the game.

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However, under the rules, the umpire can award the point to the opponent if they believe the act was intentional. But the German escaped that punishment on this time. There was no suggestion that he had done it on purpose, so the 36-year-old got a reprieve.

Andrew Castle, the fellow commentator, pointed out how costly that decision could be for the defending champion at such a key moment of the match. The commentary team also noted that this rule is usually talked about more when a player’s hat falls off during a point, rather than a ball dropping from a pocket.

Still, the former seven-time Grand Slam champion said he had witnessed similar moments before, even if they remain pretty rare on the tour.

And in the match, Struff made full use of the let, as he saved the breakpoint, and held for 1-0 in the second set. The top seed did break in the next service game, but the German ace broke back immediately. 

“Why would it be a hindrance on the second time it happens and not the first?” the former British pro asked. “That has materially affected this match at this point.” 

And while the match has now ended with the Italian through to the semis, tennis fans have seen strange moments like this before with a different outcome.

Flavio Cobolli clashes with chair umpire over controversial hindrance call

Much like today’s incident at SW19, tennis had already seen a similarly bizarre moment earlier this season at the United Cup. The drama unfolded while the 2026 Roland Garros finalist Flavio Cobolli was serving for the opening set against Swiss ace Stan Wawrinka. In the middle of a rally, a second ball slipped out of the Italian’s shorts and rolled onto the court at a crucial moment.

The 24-year-old immediately stopped the point, clearly expecting the chair umpire to call a let. But that call never came from the chair umpire, and instead, the point was awarded straight to the former world No. 3.

The Italian was convinced the decision had gone against him unfairly. He quickly called for the tour supervisor, while the Italian team captain and his father also stepped into the discussion.

As the argument carried on, it was the three-time Grand Slam champion who ended up calmly explaining the rule from across the court. The veteran pro looked completely clear on what had just happened and why the point had been given his way.

And with fans witnessing another similar moment today at Court 1, the sport’s stranger rules have once again landed right back in the spotlight.