Serena Williams Is Forced to Speak Out, Yet Again, About Sexism in Tennis After U.S. Open Final

From ELLE

Serena Williams lost to newcomer Naomi Osaka yesterday at the U.S. Open Women's Final, where a controversial call from the referee overshadowed the match duringwhat is already an uneasy time in women's tennis.

According to People, chair umpire Carlos Ramos accused the tennis superstar of cheating during the first set for receiving illegal coaching from her player box. Defending herself, Williams assured Ramos, "I don’t cheat to win, I’d rather lose. I’m just letting you know."

The situation escalated when Ramos handed Serena a game penalty court violation. The crowd roared with boos at the umpire, as Williams defended herself against the unexpected call and demanded an apology. "You are the liar," she said. "When are you going to give me my apology? You owe me an apology. Say it. Say you’re sorry. … And you stole a point from me. You’re a thief, too!"

Williams did not shake hands with the umpire after her defeat. During her post-match interview, Williams stayed positive. “Well, I don’t want to be rude, I don’t want to do questions. [Osaka] played well, this is her first Grand Slam. I know you guys were here rooting. Let’s make this the best moment we can. Let’s not boo anymore. We’re gonna get through this and we’re gonna be positive. No more booing!”

20-year-old Osaka was in tears after her victory, describing the moment as bittersweet. "It feels really emotional," she admitted. "I feel happy and sad at the same time and I think this is the most I've ever cried."

When asked about Serena's penalty, Osaka was upset by the incident, but had to concentrate on keeping her composure. "I was really concerned about her. The inner fan in me jumped out."

Following the match, Williams answered press conference questions where she called out the referee for sexism. "I'm here fighting for women's rights and women's equality. And for me to say 'thief' and for him to take a game, made me feel like it was a sexist remark. He's never taken a game from a man, because he said thief. For me, it blew my mind."

The Guardian points out that tennis star Victoria Azarenka agreed with William's remarks on Twitter. "If it was a men’s match, this wouldn’t happen like this," she wrote. "It just wouldn’t."

Serena's remarks follow an interesting couple of weeks for women's tennis. After her black catsuit was banned at the French Open and player Alize Cornet wrongly received a code violation for taking off her shirt at the U.S. Open, Williams is hoping to create change moving forward. "The fact that I have to go through this is just an example for the next person that has emotions and that want to express themselves and want to be a strong woman. They're going to be allowed to do that because of today."

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