Height at Net: A Chair-Top Moment Shines in Brisbane

Height becomes a humorous moment at the net

In the Brisbane International's opening round, a 250-point warm-up for the Australian Open, one of the tournament's quirkiest moments featured Australian Deni Sweeney and American Riley Opelka.

The Australian, who came on as a substitute for Brazil's Joao Fonseca, fell 6-3, 7-5 and then stepped toward the net to deliver the traditional post-match handshake with the towering Opelka.

A chair lifts the handshake to new heights

Rather than bending down, Sweeney fetched a chair and climbed on to it beside the net to hug Opelka, who stands 2.11 meters tall, while Sweeney is 1.70 meters tall—an obvious height mismatch that demanded a little extra altitude.

It’s not the first time a player has used furniture for a post-match greeting: in 2014, Dudi Sela (1.75m) used a chair to greet Ivo Karlovic (2.11m).

Punchline: If you’re short, you bring a chair. If you’re tall, you still need a little extra reach for the handshake—and perhaps a lighter rack to carry off the court.