Last week the world watched as Serena Williams, the best female tennis player in the world, lost her cool after being called for a foot-fault during the U.S. Open. The younger Williams sister has been criticized so much during the past week for her verbal attack on the lineswoman. She virtually had a meltdown in front of viewers worldwide and exposed us all to her potty mouth.I admit Serena was wrong and crossed the line. She should have never threatened to shove the tennis ball down the woman’s throat, and we don’t even know what else was said. However, athletes of all sports have meltdowns all of the time and rarely does it cost them the match, or in some sports, the game. The loss of temper is rarely the deciding factor in who wins or loses. So was Serena’s meltdown enough to cause her to be penalized to the extent that she would lose the match?Not taking anything away from Kim Clijsters, she’s a talented player and I think it’s incredible that she was able to win just 18 months after giving birth. However, was Serena’s meltdown such a big deal because of her actions or because of who she is? I’ll go with the latter. There have been several tennis players who have done things of that nature. Competitive, passionate athletes do it all of the time. It’s a part of the game. Those who are the best are often the ones who are seen arguing a call. They’re supposed to—especially when a seemingly bad call is made at a crucial point in the game. In Serena’s case, it was match point.So should Serena really be fined $10,500 for “aggravated behavior?” I understand that $10,500 is not much to her, especially because she received $350,000 in prize money for even reaching the semi-finals, but what exactly determines “aggravated behavior?” Beside the fact that Serena apologized for her behavior several times, Roger Federer had a run-in with a referee just two days later and was only fined $1,500.Unfair? I believe so. There is no way that Serena should have been fined nearly ten times as much as Federer was. Although Federer is the No. 1 male tennis player in the world, Serena is more popular and has a greater marketability than Federer. So, because of her talent, appeal and influence, she must be held to greater standards, thus facing a greater penalty.At first this sounded a bit contradictory to me. However, I then realized that this is how things are supposed to operate. We sports fans are just used to seeing the superstar athletes get off easily. I guess it doesn’t work like that in tennis.
