Serena Williams’ dramatic clash with Carlos Ramos in the final of the US Open had a positive impact on tennis, according to her coach in a new interview broadcasted on ESPN.
Patrick Mouratoglou was at the centre of the incident which triggered the controversy. Williams was taking on Japan’s Naomi Osaka in the final where during the match she received a violation for coaching. Umpire Ramos said he saw her coach making a gesture in the crowd. However, a bemused Williams denied any wrongdoing and said she would never cheat. The former world No.1 later went on to claim that the official was sexist before calling him a ‘liar’ and a ‘thief.’ Williams then received two further warnings that amounted to a game penalty.
“I felt it was an important moment. … It was probably one of the biggest moments of her career. She was in a Grand Slam final to equal the record of all times. And she’s losing, and I feel at that moment she’s lost on the court. So I try to help her. That’s my job.” Mouratoglou told Don Van Natta in a special documentary about the final.
Ramos was never found to have broken the code of conduct in any form, but the conflict triggered a debate around the world. Some praising Williams and other criticising her. The tennis player was later fined $17,000 following the final for her behaviour.
Despite Williams’ fine, her mentor still blames Ramos for how he handled the occasion. Even though Mouratoglou was the one who broke the rules with his hand gestures. In grand slam tennis, any form of coaching during during matches in the main draws of grand slams are forbidden. Something the Frenchman has criticised in the past.
“His job is also to keep the match under control. He totally lost control of the match, completely, because he reacted with emotions. And he’s not supposed to — he’s a chair umpire, he’s not a player.” He said.
Whilst both Williams and Osaka are happy to forget the occasion, which overshadowed the Japanese player’s first ever grand slam title, Mouratoglou has praised it. Going as far as saying that it was the ‘best moment’ to have happened in tennis over the past 10 years.
“It was horrible for us. It was horrible for Serena. It’s fantastic for tennis. It was unbelievable, that was the best moment in tennis of the past 10 years.” Mouratoglou claims.
“Tennis was everywhere. You don’t have any drama in tennis. We have drama in all the other sports, but not tennis. People should be allowed to be herself and show emotion. You want passion, that’s why people watch sport. They want things to happen. They want to feel emotion, they want to root for someone, they want to be shocked, they want to be happy, they want to be sad. That’s what they want and everybody felt something that day.”
Not everybody has viewed the incident as a positive impact on the sport. A poll set up by New York Times journalist Ben Rothenberg found that 92% of voters disagree with Mouratoglou’s claim. The 92% was based on voting from 2000 respondents.
Von Natta’s documentary ‘Serena vs. the umpire’ was broadcasted on TV in America for the first time yesterday ahead of the US Open.
