Sit down protests, tennis players who don't like tennis and Serena at her argumentative best. Monday was an entertaining day at SW19. She may well be the greatest female player of all time at this stage but that's not to say she's universally loved by the tennis set.
Her physical attributes are second to none and her mental strength is enough to have quite a few opponents defeated before she even steps foot on the court but Serena's critics often point to a few aspects of her personality that, supposedly, leave a bit to be desired. Take for example, the brief exchange on Centre Court yesterday which ended up with the defending champion threatening to sue Wimbledon for making her play on in what she felt were unsafe conditions.
At 5-5 in the first set of her fourth round match with Svetlana Kuznetsova, Serena approached the chair umpire Marija Cicak and complained that the drizzle that had started to add a bit of moisture to the centre court surface. Serena felt that the match should be halted and the roof closed.
Tournament referee Andrew Jarrett was called in and a brief exchange was picked up by the microphones.
Serena was heard saying "I'm going to fall. Can't they just close the roof?". Cicak's response was not picked up but as she returned to the baseline, Serena could then be heard saying "If I get hurt, I'm suing".
The drizzle continued to come down and the decision was taken to close the roof. The players returned and Serena duly kicked things into fifth gear, winning the next eight game to take the match 7-5, 6-0. It was another imperious performance but that threat to sue didn't go down too lightly with the Wimbledon crowd and Serena was pressed for her thoughts on the matter during the press conference. It's fair to say she didn't exactly enjoy the line of questioning.
You guys, don't even try me like that. I was in the moment, I was on the court, and what I say on the court, whether it's smashing my rackets, or... it's in the heat of the moment.
I have no plans, no future of suing Wimbledon. Like, let's get serious. That's not what I do, that's not what I am, and I'm not answering any more questions about that. Nor will I want anyone reporting that either - that's just completely unfair and wrong. Next question.
In terms of no one reporting it, that was never likely to happen. This is Wimbledon after all and when you threaten to sue, you better believe people are going to pick up on it. Did she mean it? No, of course not but, unfortunately for her, people really hate the litigious culture that America is beginning to export around the world. So, if you play that card, you better be prepared for it to be taken seriously.
