'I LOOKED LIKE ROCKY BALBOA'

Umpire Arnaud Gabas feels fortunate to have escaped a more serious injury after being hit in the eye by a tennis ball struck by Denis Shapovalov. Teenager Shapovalov was fined $7,000 on Monday for inadvertently hitting Gabas when he smashed a ball in frustration during Sunday's match against Kyle Edmund, in the deciding rubber of Canada's Davis Cup tie with Great Britain. Gabas, whose eye immediately started to swell up, was taken to a Hospital for precautionary checks but no damage was found - something the Frenchman admits was a stroke of luck. He was quoted as saying in several national newspapers: "I came off the court looking like Rocky Balboa. We have to avoid some balls during the season but this one I had no chance. I feel quite lucky it wasn't worse. Players can be a bit crazy these days. I could see he was angry and that something was coming but I never thought he would hit me."