Australian tennis player James McCabe says his father was assaulted by an official at a tournament in the United Kingdom, in an incident that he says has been reported to police as an alleged assault. According to McCabe, the confrontation involving his father, Pat McCabe, took place following his match at the Birmingham Open on Monday.
Speaking from Birmingham, McCabe described how the day unfolded. He said his match had been scheduled for 10.30am and his warm-up for around 9.30, and that he arrived at the court at about 9.25, which he described as fairly normal for a professional match. It was around that time, he said, that he directly witnessed the incident involving his father.
By his account, a tournament or venue staff member became aggressive, shouting and swearing at them. McCabe alleges the staff member then followed him and his father for about 50 metres as the pair tried to walk away and de-escalate the situation, continuing to swear at them in what he described as a deeply distressing confrontation.
McCabe said the staff member followed them around a gate and then upstairs, and that at a doorway the man forcefully slammed his father into the door area. According to McCabe, his father felt a click in his neck, an outcome he said was especially alarming given that Pat McCabe had previously undergone C5 and C6 neck surgery.
The player said his father was taken to hospital by ambulance and is in a very bad way. He said Pat McCabe had been in emergency or hospital care for three days in a row and was taken by ambulance to Midland Metropolitan University Hospital, with severe neck pain, shooting pain in his arms, numbness, loss of sensation, weakness, vomiting, dizziness and difficulty breathing.
McCabe said the ordeal forced him into an impossible situation, as he had to play a professional match while his father was in hospital. He said he had directly witnessed what happened and then had to keep competing, describing it as something that was impossible to separate from emotionally and insisting that no player should have to compete in such circumstances.
Setting out what he wants to happen next, McCabe said his first priority was for his father to be safe and treated properly. He also called for police to obtain CCTV footage, witness statements, staff and access records and medical evidence, and for the ATP, the LTA and the tournament to explain how the incident could have happened and what they will change to prevent it from occurring again.