Serena Williams suffered a humiliating loss in the women's final of the U.S. Open on Sunday. Ninth-seeded Samantha Stosur of Australia won her first major championship with a 6-2, 6-3 win over 28th-seeded Williams on Sunday on Arthur Ashe Stadium. If the seedings made Stosur the favorite, Williams, who was already a 13-time major winner, was the heavy favorite.
Critics have been lambasting Williams for her temper, which surfaced at various points during the match. Williams became angry after receiving a violation for shouting "C'mon!" when powerfully hitting the ball (forehand) before it reached Stosur's racquet. At one point, Williams can be heard telling the judge, Eva Asderaki, "If you ever see me walking down the hall, look the other way because you're out of control. You're a hater and you're unattractive inside. Who would do such a thing? Wow." She went on to call the judge a "loser" and advised Asderaki "not to look her way."
Commentators said that Williams threatened the judge. Tennis legend John McEnroe chided Williams during the broadcast because of her tantrum. Really? That's what critics used to say about him when he was throwing tantrums on the court — tantrums that make Williams' "tantrums" look like peace offerings. So we beg to differ, and we didn't see Williams' words as threats. Perhaps there's some intercultural communication conflict going on, so we'll help translate.
The Root's translation of Serena's words: "Don't think it's going to be all kicks and giggles after this match. You're messing with me, and I'm not phony, so I'm not going to pretend that we're cool afterward. Don't look in my face and try to be my friend and act like it's all good when it's not."
Is that bad sportsmanship or is that keeping it real? Some would say it's keeping it real raggedy, and refusing to shake Asderaki's hand after the match was, indeed, real raggedy. Having said that, to say that Williams was threatening the judge is out of bounds, pun intended. We suspect that if Williams really wanted to hurt someone, she would not have problem delivering. Call it what it is: bad sportsmanship, not a threat.
Read more at the Los Angeles Times.
In other news: President Obama Discreetly Honors Fallen 9/11 Victims.