Scandal in the Fed Cup: Ilie Nastase expelled after insulting players

The former Romanian tennis player Ilie Nastase caused a huge scandal during the Fed Cup tie between Romania and the United Kingdom and was expelled from the tournament being held in the city of Constanza.

The former world number one insulted chair umpire Andreas Egli and then seemed to direct derogatory terms towards rival player Johanna Konta and British captain Anne Keothavong: he called them "fucking bitches" and subsequently questioned the umpire, saying "What's your fucking problem?".

British player Konta was booed by the crowd and left the court in tears. After a 25-minute break, she returned and defeated Cirstea with a score of 6-2, 6-2.

After his misconduct, the referee decided to send him to the stands, but the 70-year-old Romanian downplayed the situation and continued insulting, ultimately being expelled from the premises. The International Tennis Federation (ITF) announced that he will not be allowed back in the facilities.

"His accreditation was revoked and he will not be part of this tie", stated the organization in a press release.

But that was not all, as he had previously displayed bad behavior. Because of this, the ITF announced that an investigation has been opened regarding the incident and also regarding some comments made by Nastase, apparently of a racist nature, about the pregnancy of American tennis player Serena Williams.

"We'll have to see what color it has (the baby). Chocolate with milk?", Nastase said. Serena Williams is black and her partner Alexis Ohanian is white.

Later on, the Romanian went to the press room at the venue and lashed out at journalists for publishing his comments about Serena Williams.