Serena Williams lost in the final of the US Open tennis tournament yesterday. She lost to Samantha Stosur, who is the first Australian female US Open winner since Yvonne Goolagong won in 1980.
If you never had the chance to see Goolagong play, it’s a pity, because she was pure ballet on the court and there has been nothing like her before or since for sheer beauty. Roger Federer comes close, but his power makes it difficult for him to achieve her grace.
As for Serena, she is a great player. Strong. Determined. Awesome when she decides it’s time to get on with winning a match.
But, something seems to happen to her in US Open finals. The last several years, she has had outbursts after losing reminiscent of a child having a tantrum. And it seems to happen only at the US Open.
Calling the referee yesterday “a hater” after a crucial call went against her, Serena showed a side of her personality that no one wants to see in a world-class athlete. And, what is “a hater,” anyway? Surely, in her more rational moments, Serena does not think that any referee is out to destroy her. But, she seems unable to control her outbursts at Flushing Meadows.
So, she was fined $2000 today after the Grand Slam Committee Director decided that Williams’ behavior “while verbally abusive, does not rise to the level of a major offense under the Grand Slam Code of Conduct."
I have a better idea. In order to save what’s left of her reputation as a fair-minded player, perhaps Serena Williams ought to simply forget about the US Open. We would still be able to watch her in other major tournaments, and we could then watch the US Open without the knot forming in our stomachs as we wait with apprehension for Serena to once again make herself and American athletes look bad.
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