Serena Williams has been handed a US$10,500 (Dh405,872) fine and could face further punishment after her foul-mouth outburst at the US Open on Saturday. In scenes more akin to an episode of Jerry Springer, Serena made her frustrations known at Flushing Meadows, venting her anger at the lineswoman whose foot fault call inadvertently saw Williams concede a semi-final match point to US Open champion Kim Clijsters. Serena lost the match 6-4, 7-5.
"The average individual would look at that and say, 'A $10,000 fine for what she did? What are you guys, crazy?' The answer is: the process isn't over," said tournament director Jim Curley. Williams was handed the maximum $10,000 penalty for her unsportsmanlike on-court behaviour, after yelling at the lines-woman in the second set of the semi-final match. The 27-year-old was also stung with a further $500 fine for smashing her racket after losing the first set 6-4.
Bill Babcock, the top administrator for grand slam tournaments, will review the incident. Curley said the inquiry would probably include reviewing TV footage, checking additional audio feeds from courtside microphones and interviewing Serena, the lineswoman, the chair umpire and possibly spectators. "What she did was unacceptable. It's unacceptable behaviour under any circumstances. "When you're on the court, and you are waving your racket toward a linesperson and using profanity, it's just simply unacceptable," Curley added. "When you look at the tape, it's pretty clear that the way she approached the linesperson, with her racket and in that manner, it was a threatening manner. It certainly was."
The chairman and chief executive of the women's tennis tour, Stacey Allaster, issued a statement calling Serena's conduct "inappropriate and unprofessional." "No matter what the circumstances, no player should be allowed to engage in such behaviour without suffering consequences," Allaster said. "I have spoken with the United States Tennis Association about this matter and I agree with the action they have taken."
After what may be recalled as the most significant foot fault in tennis history, Serena paused, retrieved a ball to serve again and then stopped. She stepped towards the official, screaming and shaking the ball at her. "If I could, I would take this... ball and shove it down your...throat," said Serena, according to a tennis official who watched a replay Saturday night. The official, who declined to be identified because the tape was still being reviewed, also said Serena used the word "kill".
Serena did release a statement through a public relations firm, acknowledging that "in the heat of battle I let my passion and emotion get the better of me and as a result handled the situation poorly." zgriffiths@thenational.ae
