The Tennis Thug (Updated)

Serena Williams' behavior on Saturday night at the U.S. Open was so appalling, so disgraceful on so many levels it's hard to know where to start.

Certainly, it was unusual to see a female professional athlete conduct herself in such a manner, something we've just not seen even with the explosion of women's sports. We now know a woman can be just as much of a jerk or a thug as any man while playing a sport. Congratulations.

What bothered me the most? It was the attitude, the sneering of the multi-millionaire Williams who rained insults down upon the official as though to say, "I'm Serena Williams. You are nothing. You have no right to make a call that interferes with my wonderfulness. You are dirt. You don't deserve to live, but because all these people are around, I will spare your worthless life."

For someone who has on occasion claimed racial prejudice when she has been offended by treatment in tournaments, it was indeed bizarre to see Williams screaming profanities at the small, Asian female judge while brandishing her racquet in a threatening manner.

Full marks to the lineswoman for standing up to Williams, and full marks to tournament officials for backing their official and imposing the code violation that ended Williams' tournament. Some are suggesting the foot fault that ignited the entire controversy shouldn't have been called, at least not at that point in the match. And if a serve was slightly out? Don't call that rule because the match is too close? Tennis pros will tell you foot-faulting doesn't really provide much of an advantage, if any, to the server, but if you have an person there to make the call and they make the call, suggesting they should hold their tongue depending on the score is absurd.

Williams has already been fined $10,500 in total for her ridiculous performance, and it's theoretically possible she could lose her entire $350,000 purse if tennis decides this was a major violation.This one's up to the Grand Slam committee and the USTA, but it's a tricky problem that also lands in the lap of Stacey Allaster, a Canadian who is now at the helm of the women's tour. The already trashy Serena has now veered into Britney Spears territory, and women's tennis understands image is a very big deal in that industry.

Some have talked of suspension for Williams, but really, being eliminated from a Grand Slam semi-final is a pretty big penalty already. It's not like the next Grand Slam event is next week. It's in January in Australia.

A simple heartfelt apology would make the difference, not the contrived public relations doubletalk produced in an official statement yesterday. The apology should be made publicly and in person to the official in question

(Ed. Note: Well, despite some who believe Williams had nothing to apologize for, she has now done so, albeit 36 hours after the fact. It took her a botched press conference and one lame press statement before she got it right, but she has now "sincerely apologized" for her "inappropriate outburst", offering that apology to the lineswoman, her opponent Kim Clijsters, the USTA and tennis fans. Glad to see she finally figured it out.")

Comments

[ken]

you of all people Damien -- I'm sure you've never lost it playing sports! Beware the self righteous!

[LM]

Wow - I am disgusted by your 'thug' comments completely. Will it take you 36 hours to apologize and 'make it right'? I am a young white women who works with many different cultures and races and find your generalizations insulting and offensive. Please keep you 'thug' comments to yourself.

[Kevin]

Serena was called a thug because she threatened to shove a tennis ball up a line judge's ass -- listen in hi-def with a good set of headphones and you'll hear it. That said, in the context of a professional tennis match her behaviour could be called thuggish, but this hardly makes her a thug. Brat would be a more appropriate label.

[Lee]

I'm so glad she did this on such a big stage. She's always thought she was better than everyone else and unfortunately, her family seems to enable her. They need to sit her down and talk to her a bit about humility. You'd never see Clijsters, Federer, Nadal etc. act like this. People keep saying "look at McEnroe" but really, he deserved suspensions, too. At least he didn't drop f-bombs and he didn't exactly look threatening because he was scrawny. Plus, his tirades were generally towards umpires. Linespeople generally don't do this for a living, I know one guy who used to do the Canadian Open and he had a day job. He took vacation time every year to be a linejudge. So if this woman is in the same position, she is pretty much a volunteer and to be berated with such hate by this multi-millionaire is unbelievable.

[Jeff]

I'm a white male here in Toronto and generally like Damien's editorials. But this one, is way off base. Calling her a THUG? Really? Someone (one of the best woman tennis stars out there) loses it for a few seconds in the heat of a championship and she gets labelled as a thug and a complete disgrace? Sorry but I have to agree with Andre who pointed out that this is what happens when a BLACK person loses their cool. They're immediately "angry" or putting the "slap down" (Obama!) on the other person or group. It really is a disgrace when the media further's society's ills like this...

[Chris]

Damien,
Thanks for writing this article. In no other sport are officials as disrespected as they are in tennis. Smaller tournaments would never penalize a big name for fear of losing ticket sales. Police arrest people for doing less than Serena did. That lineswoman is my new hero...tough. McEnroe once again showed the punk that he is by saying on air that the footfault call was out of order. You can't see it from that angle! If the lineswoman saw it, then it happened! Period! In baseball they don't put up with much and that's the way it should be. Thank heaven my kids didn't watch the match.

[Delmar Gettari]

Grow up Damien. All she did was show contempt at the referee. It is not like your Hockey gods don't freak out and swear and act like babies.... Grow up.!

[kushiro]

I am heartened to know that if you are involved in a high-pressure, competitive situation, it is perfectly okay to threaten someone else with violence. I guess tomorrow will be "Bring A Baseball Bat to Work Day".

[David]

It's tennis. There is a distinct culture to follow, in which all players on the tour know of. What she did was so out of line it was shocking. There is a clear difference between insulting someone and threatening harm. It's not professional, period. I have 2 daughters that play at the provincial level, 6 and 9 yrs old. It was a terrible example for them.
Saving grace would have been taking responsibilty for it immediately, and she didn't. She is a diva - and that is NOT a complement. The sport owes her nothing. Take lessons from Roger, Rafa, and Kim. Huge difference in character. Good job Damien. Call it the way it is!

[other mark]

Hard to believe how many people are writing in defending this behaviour. Not only do I think Serena's little outburst was pathetic, I think McEnroe's comments were stupid too. At a certain point, the call itself became unimportant/irrelevant to what was transpiring on the court. Yet McEnroe continued to babble on about the legitmacy of the call while Serena's on court tantrum grew and grew and grew. He defended her actions instead of stating what everyone should hear: this behaviour is unacceptable, regardless of the call.

[Julie]

I guess when a man- a white man acts this way it is okay. We all remember John McEnroe. Serena's behaviour was nothing compared to his, but look at all the press she gets.

[Mike D]

Damien - you should know better than to use such a headline. Your use of that phrase is clearly loaded with racial undertones, even if you didn't intend it to be so. More than that, from someone who decries the anti-European movement in the NHL for the nonsense that it is, I'm surprised you wouldn't be more aware of your choice of words - and the thoughts that underlie them. The veiled sexism of your second paragraph is surprising as well, considering your long support of female inclusion in the Hockey Hall of Fame. Your fourth paragraph is simply indefensible. Are you accusing Williams of reifying a disgusting stereotype? Because that's what you've written. Shameful.

[Judy]

Re Serena Williams, it's the steroids that caused her meltdown. If she gets off the 'roids, she stops acting like a man, and regains some iota of class.

[Aditya]

i hope serena williams gets suspended for 6 months from all major tournaments...