A look at five sporting tantrums

Some of sport’s most famous bust-ups

Tennis turned ugly at the weekend as we saw Canadian Denis Shapovalov fined £5,600 for hitting an umpire in the face with a ball in a fit of rage at the conclusion of his Davis Cup match.

Losing to Great Britain’s Kyle Edmund 6-3, 6-4, 2-1 at the time, the 17-year-old chose to take his frustrations out on the man in the middle, whacking the ball at Arnaud Gabas, defaulting the match. He later apologised for his out-burst, and the Tennis Federation says no further action will be taken against the player.

But it got us thinking about the famous temper tantrums witnessed in sport over the years, some more hilarious than the savage attack on Gabas that saw him pay a visit to Ottawa General Hospital. To be fair, it was a great shot from Shapovalov, and he probably couldn’t do it again if he tried, as you will see below…..

Football – Eric Cantona

There’ no better place to start than Eric Cantona’s dislike for Crystal Palace fans. A genius on the football pitch, and one of the most iconic players to pull on a Manchester United shirt, but there was no doubting the Frenchman’s short-fuse. Watch what has been dubbed the most famous common assault case in English legal history. No amount of paint the fence could’ve stopped this…..

Boxing – James Butler

Just as controversial, but twice as brutal, boxer James Butler, once a respected name in his field, couldn’t handle losing to Richard Grant, so much so that after the decision was announced, he walked across the ring and, with gloves removed, knocked ‘The Alien’ out cold. He was charged for aggravated assault and spent four months in the slammer, I’m guessing with a cell to himself…..