While the much anticipated NFL season looms patiently over the shoulders of many Americans, the U.S. Open Tournament has triggered some press conference drama that even Dennis Green can appreciate. The two-week long U.S. Open that features superstar American sisters Venus and Serena Williams has captured the younger Serena in a bit of a mood after dropping her 3rd straight Grand Slam quarterfinals match to Justine Henin of Belgium.Immediately after losing, Serena was visibly upset at the outcome, but the verbal dissatisfaction came in the press conference that followed. After giving a few short, bitter answers to why she lost, her assertion that Henin played better while hitting a lot of lucky shots caught the attention of fans and broadcasters who pointed out the unsportsmanlike nature of the comments.
It wasn’t Henin’s skill or tactics that got her the win, but her lucky shots. If the fans of the game didn’t take offense to those comments, Serena’s eventual claim that she would have skipped the press conference if she could afford the fine marked her as a petulant crybaby.
Although the post match comments were disrespectful to the legitimate winner, we have to stop gasping and realize that the girl was frustrated and tired of seeing the same person continue to beat her on a main stage.
There’s no rule in tennis that says the female athletes can’t be confident in their ability and visibly upset when another makes her recent millions by closing the door in her face. This frustration has obviously reared its ugly head in the form of a careless rant in the face of a question a PR rookie could tackle. So give the sister a break, let her be a bad sport in the moment.
Big Sister Venus Advances To Semifinals, Will Face Henin
It will make for a better match when they face each other again anyway. John McEnroe made himself famous for his toddler-style of public relations, so tennis isn’t getting anything now that hasn’t been done 10 times worse already.
Keep talking, it’s the only way they’ll ever hear you.--JJJ