BRATISLAVA, November 7, 2018

Austrian qualifier Jurij Rodionov made it into the second round of the Peugeot Slovak Open in Bratislava on Tuesday with a hard-fought 2-6, 7-6(1), 7-6(6) victory over Uladzimir Ignatik of Belarus, but the things that happened right after the match led to a lot of talk on the internet.

OMG this is the best and more arrogant celebration ever by Rodionov pic.twitter.com/XKd0ASgrxu

— Stefano Berlincioni (@Carretero77) 6. November 2018

The 19-year-old Rodionov explained his eccentric post-match celebration later on Facebook:

“As my jubilation caused some confusion I want to provide some background information to make things clearer. Ignatik and me know each other for quite some time, but we were never friends. On the court we always had a special rivalry. In addition the referees boosted the emotions on court, as they made many tight decisions. My opponent rejected the mandatory handshake after the match although I was waiting for him at the net twice. That made me furious and prompted my jubilation. Afterwards and regarded independent from the whole story it appears somehow excessive, but it was created just through my negative emotion at that precise moment.”