Tennis great Serena Williams has reflected on her controversial on-court meltdown at the 2018 US Open final, insisting getting angry at losing the match was "audacious" because reaching the final was already “beyond amazing.”
The 23-time Grand Slam champion was the subject of a media storm last autumn after lashing out at chair umpire Carlos Ramos, who was officiating at her final match against Japan’s Naomi Osaka in New York. She branded him “a thief” and “a liar” after he issued her with code violations, later branding the umpire's actions sexist.
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Williams’ outburst was met with mixed reactions by the tennis community with many pundits and players, including Roger Federer, condemning her behavior which marred Osaka’s maiden Grand Slam win celebrations.
Appearing on US Today on Thursday, Williams stressed that advancing to the final of the tournament, just a year after giving birth to her daughter, was a great achievement for her and reason enough not to get angry.
“Literally just back from having the baby, looking back, I don’t know how I did that,” she said during the interview.
“Obviously Grand Slams are most important to me, I was really close last year, so close,” the 37-year-old added, reflecting on coming so close to winning a record-equaling 24th major title.
Talking about her verbal altercation with the match official, Williams noted that she became overwhelmed with emotion without realizing that reaching the Grand Slam final was “beyond amazing.”
“And I had the audacity to be upset when I didn’t win, and I’m like, ‘Why am I angry? This is beyond amazing,’” the player said.
Williams recently withdrew from the Miami Open due to a knee injury but said she will keep playing throughout the season, eyeing to win yet another Grand Slam.
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‘I had the audacity to be upset when I didn’t win’: Serena Williams on US Open meltdown
‘I had the audacity to be upset when I didn’t win’: Serena Williams on US Open meltdown
