Australian Open match halted as tennis star rushes to aid of ball girl

Zeynep Sonmez had to come to the aid of a ball girl who fainted at the Australian Open on Sunday.

The ball girl fell flat on her back during Sonmez’s game with Ekaterina Alexandrova.

AFP

She quickly stood back up beside the umpire’s chair.

Turkish tennis player Sonmez sprinted over to come to the ball girl’s aid and led her to the side of the court.

“The umpire is making an official announcement that the match will sort of be paused while help is on the way,” commentator Catherine Whitaker said.

“The most important thing is the welfare of the ball kid, but in terms of the match, this is tough on Alexandrova, who is serving.”

The youngster received medical attention with play resuming six minutes later.

Tennis Australia later confirmed that the girl received medical attention before going home.

Temperatures reached around 28C on Sunday at the Australian Open.

“She was really struggling. She said she was fine but it was really obvious she was not fine,” Sonmez said.

“So I went to grab her and said ‘sit down and drink something, you’re not fine’.

“As we were walking she fainted so luckily I grabbed her. She was really shaking.”

Getty

She added: “I always say it is more important to be a good human being than a good tennis player.

“It was just my instinct to help her and I think everyone would do the same. I’m happy I got to help.

“If I see the ball girl tomorrow or later in the tournament I’d love to speak to her.”

Australian Open upset

World number 112 Sonmez clung on to beat Alexandrova 7-5 4-6 6-4 in the first upset of the 2026 Australian Open.

The Russian was the 11th seed and a five-time winner on the WTA tour.

Sonmez also became the first Turkish player to reach the second round of the Australian Open.