Serena: All I want is testers to play fair
SERENA WILLIAMS declared yesterday that she does not care how often she is drug tested, as long as other players are treated in the same way. The seven-times champion was back at Wimbledon, where she begins another campaign today, and reiterated her claim that she undergoes more checks for doping than anyone else on the circuit. The 36-year-old American went on the front foot when asked about last week’s story on Deadspin.com that an official from US Anti Doping left her house empty-handed after a visit on June 14. She explained that he arrived 12 hours ahead of her allotted daily ‘whereabouts’ hour, and that it was among a welter of out-ofcompetition tests being demanded of her. ‘How is it I’m getting tested five times in June? It’s only June, I’ve been tested five times,’ said Williams, who has played three tournaments since coming back from giving birth. ‘I’m OK with that, as long as everyone is being treated equally. That’s all I care about. I despise having people in our sport that aren’t being honest. I’m totally OK with testing and I encourage it. What I want to know is that everyone is getting tested, that we are really working to keep this sport clean. ‘I feel like it’s equality, it’s all about equality. If that’s testing everyone five times, let’s do it. It’s just about being equal and not centring one person out. ‘I never knew that I was tested so much more than everyone else. I didn’t realise it was such a discrepancy with me as against the other players that they listed, at least with the American players, both male and female. ‘For me it’s a little frustrating. How can I have a missed test when it’s nowhere near the time I should be there? It’s really disappointing, shocking. I was just like, “that’s just weird’’. She may have been unaware but she is in good company when it comes to being heavily tested. Roger Federer later revealed that he has undergone seven examinations of his blood and urine in the past month. Players coming back from breaks tend to be more aggressively targeted. Previously the world number one — now 183 — might have been surly and defensive when asked about something as potentially controversial as anti-doping but, as at the French Open, Williams was in expansive mood. Today she plays world number 107 Arantxa Rus, having been put on Court One in a nod to the fact that she comes in as the number 25 seed. A special case was made for her to receive a privileged position in the draw, and she denied that she was at all offended that it was not something higher. ‘I don’t at all feel that way. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised,’ she said. ‘I came in here expecting that maybe I wouldn’t get a seed. I do know Wimbledon tends to kind of march to their own drum.’