Carson Branstine fumes over line error after opening round exit at home tournament: 'What's a girl supposed to do?'

Canada’s young star, Carson Branstine, recently hit headlines for her pursuing modelling alongside tennis career.

The reliability of electronic line-calling in tennis has come under the scanner once again, as home star Carson Branstine voiced concerns over a system failure during her match at the Canadian Open 2025 on Wednesday.

The World No. 178, playing in the main draw in Montreal after receiving a wildcard, faced a tough opening-round match against former World No. 3 Maria Sakkari of Greece.

Branstine struggled early, losing the first set 2–6, but bounced back strongly to take the second set 6–3. In the deciding set, tides were still in favour of the Canadian from 0–3 down to level the score, earning cheers in front of her home crowd.

Also Read: Top five women’s singles players who pulled out of Canadian Open 2025

However, the controversy unfolded late in the third set, with Branstine serving at 5–6 and leading 30–15 in the game. During a rally, a Sakkari backhand appeared to land clearly out, missing the baseline by a few centimeters. However, no call was made by the electronic line system.

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A post shared by Carson Branstine (@carsonbranstine)

After returning the ball Branstine immediately appealed for a replay. Unfortunately, that could not be shown, as the system only captures the most recent bounce and Branstine had already returned the shot, so the disputed bounce had passed.

After the match, Branstine took to social media to express her frustration. “They didn’t let me replay this clear mistake by the electronic line call because I played the shot after… BRUH obviously I tried to play the shot — the damn thing didn’t call the ball out. What’s a girl supposed to do?” she wrote on her X (Twitter) handle replying to a video of the match.

If not for that failure in the system, the Canadian would have gone two points clear. However, as it turned out Sakkari made most use of the advantage to win the next three points and take the match 6-2, 3-6, 7-5.

This isn’t the first time the electronic line-calling system in the sport has faced backlash from players and fans.

Earlier at Wimbledon 2025, a mid-rally fault call due to a system glitch during Taylor Fritz’s quarter-final match sparked widespread criticism. It also reignited the debate over replacing human line judges with technology.

Apart from that, many other top players — including Karen Khachanov, and British stars Jack Draper and Emma Raducanu — have also voiced concerns about the system’s accuracy.

What is Electronic Line System?

The electronic line-calling system, known as Hawk-Eye Live, uses 18 cameras to track the tennis ball’s trajectory and make instant line calls. It was introduced in the sport widely during the COVID-19 pandemic, as it replaced human line judges at events.

Despite receiving praise for accuracy and speed, the system has also faced criticism and glitches, sparking debate over the reliability of tech in tennis.

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