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Several spectators at Wimbledon have been arrested after a player apparently spat at the crowd. Romanian player Victor Hanescu was trailing the match 3-0 down in the fifth set against Germany's Daniel Brands when he was caught by the cameras spitting into the crowd after some tennis fans hurled verbal abuse. Police said four youths were held under the Public Order Act after Hanescu had complained to officers. At the same time the world's number 38 retired from the match with a leg injury - he had earlier wasted four match points. Organisers of the worlds most prestigious tennis event however suggested that the two incidents on court 18 may not be related. A spokesman said: "The initial thought was that the four people arrested were part of the same spitting incident. But the thinking now is that possibly they weren't. That was just a random coincidence. Therefore this alleged spitting incident is directed at a different person or people who we don't know." Faces £6,600 fine The referee, Andrew Jarrett, requested a recording of the incident to see if any further action will be taken against the player, who technically quit the tournament by defaulting his match - he also faces a £6,600 fine for unsportsmanlike behaviour. "The umpire issued a code violation for unsportsmanlike conduct that covers things like spitting and swearing," added the Wimbledon official. "His report will obviously be considered along with any other witnesses that we have from our side and then the referee will obviously look at those and any other footage he's got available to him with his colleagues, and at some stage will make a decision."
A Metropolitan Police spokeswoman said:
"Police were called to Court 18 following a disturbance. "Four youths were arrested. They have all been taken to a south London station under section five of the Public Order Act."
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