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The tennis aficionado who skyrocketed to fame for his fervent backing of British player Emma Raducanu found himself in an unexpected twist of fate when authorities removed him from the Australian Open on Friday.
Identified as James Bray from Sydney, the fan earned attention by calling Raducanu ‘Raddo’ during her commanding 6-4, 6-1 victory over Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew, all while sporting an ‘Australia’ singlet in green and gold.
After clinching the match, Raducanu mentioned Bray during her court-side interview, expressing gratitude for the enthusiastic support. She humorously added, “Thank you to the support, it was incredible on both sides, and apparently, my new nickname is ‘Raddo’.”
As the crowd laughed, Raducanu continued to banter, with Bray enthusiastically shouting more words of encouragement.
Despite dealing with a foot injury ahead of the tournament, Raducanu later made a public appeal to connect with her spirited fan.
Tennis super fan Jack Bray became an internet sensation for his support of Brit star Emma Raducanu at the Australian Open
He was back in the saddle again for Alex de Minaur’s third round match against Frances Tiafoe on Friday night
Things went sour for the Sydneysider, though, as Victorian Police directed him to leave the arena
Bray documented the whole thing and posted pics and videos to his Instagram Story overnight
Bray didn’t miss a beat and was back at Rod Laver Arena on Friday night, this time rallying behind local favorite Alex de Minaur during his match against American Frances Tiafoe.
However this around, Australian Open staff deemed his support too ‘rowdy’ and he was asked to leave by police.
Bray posted a series of videos to his Instagram Story documenting police issuing him a directive to move on order for 24 hours, along with a $700 fine.
‘So we’ve got the police here, unfortunately I’m being kicked out of the Australian Open because I’ve been too rowdy,’ he said.
A police officer then notifies him that he is being issued a directive to leave for 24 hours.
‘Kicked out of the Australian Open because I am a fan,’ Bray continued.
‘Thank you very much. I appreciate being kicked out of the Australian Open for being an Australian Open fan, being a tennis fan.’
Bray continued to film outside the venue as he was being escorted out by police.
Bray claimed he did nothing wrong and was just supporting the Aussie tennis star playing at Rod Laver Arena
Bray was fined $700 and ordered to stay away from the Australian Open for 24 hours after his eviction
‘This is hilarious, I’ve got the police force here taking me out,’ he posted.
‘I feel like this guy [an Australian Open security guard] doesn’t want to do it, and that’s fine.
‘The police force is taking me out of the Australian Open.
‘I’m a big fan, no dramas. But the cops are here. It’s quite fun, quite fun.’
Once police had successfully removed him from Rod Laver Arena, Bray took the time to create a third video post.
‘Bit of a weird feeling, paid $700 for a ticket to the ‘Demon’ [de Minaur],’ he said.
‘I feel like everything was going well. I was cheering him, not disrespectful, I wasn’t cheering in between double faults or in between serves or nothing like that.
‘I was just cheering on him like I would generally cheer on any Australian on any court.
‘For some reason security came up to me and said: ‘sorry mate, you’ve been warned, you need to leave’.
‘It was a bit of a weird one. I feel like I wasn’t doing anything bad. Everyone around me was cheering.
‘I wasn’t being disrespectful, Tiafoe was playing well, Demon was playing well.
‘Dunno, got kicked out. Security literally f***ing strong-armed me.’
A Tennis Australia spokeswoman said that Bray had been issued several warnings before he was instructed to leave.
‘Security received a number of complaints from fans in Rod Laver Arena last night relating to the disruptive behaviour of an individual in the crowd,’ Tennis Australia said in a statement.
‘Despite multiple warnings from staff, he refused to modify his behaviour and continued to disrupt those around him.
‘Police were called to assist security speaking with the patron who disregarded advice to minimise his disruptive behaviour. He was directed to leave the precinct and not return for 24 hours. He has not been banned from the event.’
Daily Mail has contacted Victoria Police for comment.