Serena hits back at Ilie’s nasty say

Bucharest (Romania), April 25: Pregnant tennis star Serena Williams and gymnastics great Nadia Comaneci blasted tennis legend Ilie Nastase for making “racist”, “sexist” and “offensive” comments during the Fed Cup tie between Romania and Britain at the weekend.

Serena spoke in response to the suspended Romanian captain’s comments speculating about the skin color of her unborn baby. The 23time major champion wrote on Instagram on Monday: “It disappoints me to know we live in a society where people like Ilie Nastase can make such racist comments towards myself and (my) unborn child.”

Serena is black. Her fiance, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, is white.

Serena also referred to Nastase’s “sexist comments against my peers” — a reference to his verbal abuse directed at British player Johanna Konta, British captain Anne Keothavong and the chair umpire during Fed Cup matches over the weekend. He was ejected from the Romania vs Britain contest and provisionally suspended by the International Tennis Federation.

Serena said: “I humbly thank the ITF for any consideration given to all the facts in this case. They will have my full support.”

She also wrote: “I have said it once and I’ll say it again, this world has come so far but yet we have so much further to go. Yes, we have broken down so many barriers — however there are a plethora more to go. This or anything else will not stop me from pouring love, light and positivity into everything that I do. I will continue to take a lead and stand up for what’s right.”

Nastase was also blasted by compatriot Comaneci. “Ilie has been my friend for many years, but I can not condone or defend his recent ugly and very offensive remarks,” the 55-yearold five-time Olympic gold medallist wrote on Twitter.

Nastase and Comaneci are Romania’s two greatest sporting icons.

Nastase, for his part, was unrepentant, saying that he didn’t believe his remarks at a news conference about Serena’s baby were racist.

“I want to know what word I used is racist?” he said on Monday. He added that he is a friend of Serena’s.

As for what happened during the matches against Britain, Nastase acknowledged: “Yes, I lost my temper.”

But he called his punishment “crazy.”

Nastase earned the nickname “Nasty” for his oncourt outbursts and gamesmanship in his playing heyday in the 1970s. But it also described his game, which earned him two Grand Slam singles titles and more than 100 ATP titles. He’s a member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame. —AP