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[Other Sport] Poor Serena
- Thread starter Juan Albion
- Start date
highflyer
Well-known member
- Jan 21, 2016
- 2,553
It's not just about defending/condemning - it's about whether she was treated equally.
Women's Tennis Association, (spokesperson for) the United States Tennis Association, Victoria Azarenka and Sue Barker all say not. Djokovic also providing a more nuanced view:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/45468290
Can't believe people on 5Live questioning the umpire given all the debates on the programme about how referees and umpire's get dogs abuse from parents and children and how it should be stamped out.
If you call someone a liar or a thief in such circumstances you've already lost the argument regardless
dejavuatbtn
Well-known member
Absolutely disgraceful behaviour from a sportsperson at the top of their profession. It doesn’t matter what sex she is, she should get a year ban for that (I suspect if she was a footballer, she would). I would even describe her as a bully to think she should say that, in that way, to another human being and thinking she was in the right.
LamieRobertson
Not awoke
Jackthelad
Well-known member
- Mar 31, 2010
- 1,072
Her ego is out of control, the problem is she has been told how amazing she is on and off the court and she really thinks she is some kind of saint to be revered at all times.
highflyer
Well-known member
- Jan 21, 2016
- 2,553
Yup, definitely. All she's ever had is admiration and praise for her achievements. Never anything else. Not on this thread or anywhere else. Just endless non-stop positivity.
https://www.vox.com/2015/3/11/8189679/serena-williams-indian-wells-racism
'...in the moments surrounding her win at the French Open in June 2015, Williams was compared to an animal, likened to a man, and deemed frightening and horrifyingly unattractive. One Twitter user wrote that Williams "looks like a gorilla, and sounds like a gorilla when she grunts while hitting the ball. In conclusion, she is a gorilla." And another described her as "so unbelievably dominant ... and manly."
Blue Valkyrie
Not seen such Bravery!
Nasty piece of work, trying to weasel out of responsibility for her own behaviour.
Beach Hut
Brighton Bhuna Boy
If women want equality in Tennis then play five sets in singles instead of three ?
Bold Seagull
strong and stable with me, or...
Isn't all the talk about men and women both paying 3 sets rather than 5?
You've got young men like Murray and Nadal facing career ending injuries through how many matches they play on a tour. When it was first 5 sets they never played as many tournaments as they do now. 5 is far to long. Also saw talk about it being best of 3 up to the semi finals in the majors. All the other tournaments are all 3 sets anyway for men and women.
mejonaNO12 aka riskit
Well-known member
If she had come out and said "I feel I was punished much more harshly than if a man had done it........BUT my actions were still completely out of order and I apologise to the umpire" then I may have a bit of sympathy.
But to not even acknowledge that you have been out right disrespectful to the umpire in the first place? Yeah, sympathy gone.
Sort your own behaviours out first and then address the bigger issue.
But to not even acknowledge that you have been out right disrespectful to the umpire in the first place? Yeah, sympathy gone.
Sort your own behaviours out first and then address the bigger issue.
Justice
Dangerous Idiot
The Williams sisters annoy me don’t bother with the tours just turn up for the big bucks grand slams. 
mikeyjh
Well-known member
There's little doubt that Serena Williams has been the victim of terrible abuse through the years and some of the comments on this thread about body shape etc demonstrate that the discrimination continues. There's also little doubt that her and her sister's stories are an incredible triumph. On this occasion however, she is behaving exactly as Jackthelad described, as someone who believes she is 'above the law', as they say. Little is done to advance the cause of equality when an act such as this is just left open to ridicule by the 'health and safety gone mad' brigade.
highflyer
Well-known member
- Jan 21, 2016
- 2,553
It's possible to acknowledge both that the behaviour was clearly wrong (which it was), but that there is also a wider, and very real, context. Not to excuse, but to better understand.
mikeyjh
Well-known member
I don't disagree but if you don't do the former it weakens the argument for the latter....
Kalimantan Gull
Well-known member
I don't really see the point in that argument, we don't watch tennis as an exercise in endurance, its about watching the highest quality. These are tennis players, not marathon runners. There's nothing sexist about pointing out that women aren't as physically strong as men, but it's pretty sexist to suggest that women should be paid less as a result.
hart's shirt
Well-known member
We're not in a time when women for the most part are viewed either by men or themselves as 'the weaker sex', at least not in the West.
The vast majority agree that women should have as many chances as men in the workplace, no glass ceilings, no pay gap for the same job/hours, etc.
And it's not the case that they're playing men - just other women. It's a level playing field / tennis court.
We're talking top professional sportswomen, many of whom play doubles as well in tournaments on the same day to boost earnings. They can handle it.
Respectfully, I never suggested that women should be paid less, just that they should play the same amount of tennis for the same money as men.
That seems entirely fair.
Anything less than that and there's effectively a pay gap for male tennis players in reverse. And a sexist attitude of 'women can't deal with it' will prevail.
Tennis needs to change for the benefit of women, but it might well involve them playing more of it to do so.
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hart's shirt
Well-known member
If United will smash everyone, that suggests that it's not a competitive league (at least this season) and isn't comparable to the men's equivalent.
That's the point.
DavidRyder
Well-known member
- Jul 23, 2013
- 2,930
The Williams sisters annoy me don’t bother with the tours just turn up for the big bucks grand slams.
Years ago I went to Eastbourne, and saw Venus (who was just being touted as someone to look out for) and Serena (who was a nobody) knocking about on one of the outside courts. Didn't bother to get their autographs (which was one of my reasons to be there, collecting sigs) - hindsight eh!
chimneys
Well-known member
- Jun 11, 2007
- 3,609
Yep!
"Novak Djokovic, who won a third men's US Open title on Sunday, said the interventions by Ramos were "unnecessary" and that they "changed the course of the match".
"I have my personal opinion that maybe the chair umpire should not have pushed Serena to the limit, especially in a Grand Slam final," the Serb said.
But Djokovic said he did not agree with Simon's comments, adding: "I don't understand from where he's coming with that statement."
The 14-time Grand Slam champion also described the situation as "tough" for the umpire and said "we have to empathise with him"."