'HE WAS HAVING A BIT OF A WHINGE': THOMPSON EXPLAINS FREAKISH HINDRANCE MOMENT

Barely anything was going the way of Luciano Darderi. (Getty/Glyn Kirk)

A crazy moment on set point provoked Italy's Luciano Darderi when he argued against a non-hindrance call on Jordan Thompson.

As Thompson was serving for the opening set at 5-4, 40-15, he showed his quick reflex skills by catching his hat, which had fallen off his head after his service motion.

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However, both players continued playing until the Aussie won the point, but Darderi raged at the chair umpire after asking why the incident wasn't called a hindrance, as he threw his racquet at his player's chair.

The audio picked up Thompson saying to Darderi at the changeover: "So it's happened to me a few times, so every time it's come to the ground, it's the point. But apparently if it doesn't hurt me... I agree with you, because every time it hinders me, you get the point."

Thompson won the match 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 to earn his first-ever fourth-round appearance at Wimbledon.

"It hindered me more than it did my opponent," Thompson told Stan Sport's Grand Slam Daily when asked about the controversy.

"He was having a bit of a whinge, but I get where he's coming from. But rules are rules, so you just have to play on.

"My hat's fallen off before, and most of the calls have gone against me, and that one, it puts him off, but I guess if he stopped the point, I would've happily replayed it.

"It doesn't count unless it hits the deck, so play on."

The media also put the question to the 31-year-old in the post-match press conference.

"I think the rule's pretty average. I mean, if your hat comes off and you catch it, it's still a hindrance. But apparently, if it's the person the hat comes off of, it's play on," he said.

At last year's US Open, Thompson knocked his hat off his head mid-point against Alex de Minaur, resulting in the point being replayed.

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