Erin Routliffe accidentally struck her former doubles partner Asia Muhammad in the face with a shot during a doubles match at the Charleston Open. The incident occurred in the second-set tiebreak of their Round of 16 clash. Routliffe and partner Jennifer Brady won the match 6-4, 7-6.
Erin Routliffe and Jennifer Brady faced Jessica Pegula and Asia Muhammad in the doubles Round of 16 at Credit One Stadium during the Charleston Open. The new pairing of Routliffe and Brady started strongly, taking a 4-0 lead in the first set by breaking serve twice. Pegula and Muhammad clawed back one break, but Routliffe and Brady closed out the set 6-4 on serve thereafter. The second set went to a tiebreak at 6-6, where the drama unfolded. Routliffe returned a backhand from Muhammad, and as both players approached the net, Routliffe's shot hit Muhammad directly in the face. Muhammad sat down holding her face in pain, prompting silence from the crowd. Routliffe rushed over, apologizing repeatedly. Despite the mishap, Brady and Routliffe won the tiebreak to advance 6-4, 7-6. Their run ended in the quarterfinals with a 6-3, 6-1 loss to Miyu Kato and Giuliana Olmos at the Althea Gibson Club Court. This marked the first meeting between Routliffe and Muhammad since their partnership ended. Routliffe had split from Gabriela Dabrowski in late 2025 amid Dabrowski's breast cancer treatment, then teamed with Muhammad, whose best result was a Miami quarterfinal. Reflecting post-match, Routliffe said, “We had a lot of fun out there today. We knew it was going to be a tough first round given that all four on court are good players. It was a high quality match.”