Serena gets ump in sexism storm
SERENA WILLIAMS sparked a huge sexism row as she crashed to defeat in the US Open women’s singles final.
Williams was beaten 6-2 6-4 as Naomi Osaka, 20, became the first Japanese woman to win a Grand Slam title.
But Williams, 36, went into meltdown after being given a code violation for coaching, followed by a penalty point for racket abuse and finally a game penalty after accusing umpire Carlos Ramos of lying.
She also claimed Ramos would from GAVIN BERRY in New York not have been so hard on a man as she branded the Portuguese umpire a “thief” and a “liar” during her stormy defeat.
The American’s first warning came for on-court coaching which triggered her torrent of abuse and led to further action being taken as well as smashing her racket.
She told Ramos: “I don’t cheat to win. I’d rather lose. You will never be on another court of mine as long as you live. You stole a point from me. being easy out there, it’s been quite tough.
“But he looks as though he is really enjoying the scrap.
“He has been pretty calm and I would imagine that the reception he got tonight when he went out to bat probably moved him, it moved everybody else in our dressing room.
“It’s fantastic support he’s had but he just seems to cope with everything that’s put in front of him.
“As much as we will miss his runs and his catches, I think that calming influence among the team and the staff is what we will miss when he’s not in the dressing room.”
The Oval are charging £35 for adults and £1 for Under-16s today in an attempt to boost the crowd on day four with the chance to see Cook’s swansong. You’re a thief.” She added later: “For me to say ‘thief’ and for him to take a game, it made me feel like it was a sexist remark.
“I’ve seen other men call other umpires several things. He’s never taken a game from a man because they said ‘thief’.”
Williams was yesterday hit with a fine of just £13,000.
She was docked £7,500 for verbally abusing Ramos, £2,500 for being warned for coaching and £3,000 for smashing her racket with the money coming out of her £1.4m runners-up prize. The home crowd jeered at the trophy presentation with Williams pleading for the boos to stop and Osaka reduced to tears.
But the champion refused to blame her childhood heroine, saying: “I’m always going to remember the Serena that I love.
“It doesn’t change anything for me.”
Jubilant Jamie Murray won his sixth Grand Slam doubles crown when he and American Bethanie Mattek-Sands beat Nikola Mektic and Alicja Rosolska 2-6 6-3 11-9 to retain the mixed title the Scot won with Martina Hingis last year.