The name Serena literally translates as The Peaceful One – not, as one of it’s more notorious owners fondly imagines, The Earful One.
The truly appalling, there is no other word for it, display by Serena Williams at the US Open will haunt tennis forever.
Do not, at your peril, compare it to the amusing antics of Mcenroe or Nastase. Williams took it to another level – there was a menace, an evil intent about her attack on the line judge, which went beyond an emotional outburst. Under pressure, she had reverted to type. She looks evil, she plays evilly, and when push came to shove she revealed herself in her true colours – an evil woman so out of place in a genteel sport, even in this day and age of grunters and munters.
If the tennis authorities do not carry out the ultimate sanction – she should be banned for life from pro tennis – then they are in effect endorsing it, and as such we will breed generation after generation of violently abusive tennis players who will push the envelope further and further until one carries a gun on court and blows away a hapless umpire or errant ball girl.
To her credit, I think it was a moment of madness born out of the absolute will to win – once the issue had been resolved, and the match lost, she departed with a minimum of fuss, pausing only to congratulate the bemused Clijsters. That in itself may the most damning evidence of all – her tacit acknowledgement that she had crossed the boundary.
Clijsters went on to cap a fairytale comeback by winning the tournament, but unless Williams is ejected from the game forthwith, I suspect it is her behaviour which we will remember for years to come, as we stand appalled by its legacy.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
On another poor decision
The decision by Andrew Freelance-Flintoff to reject a central contract, and instead tout his wares to the highest bidder, is a significant one for cricket.
In deciding to become a hired gun, Freddie has done no more than indicate that his playing days are numbered, doubtless because his injuries are worse than we know, and he intends to milk what dollars he can out of the Delhi Daredevils, Lashmipur Longdrops or whoever before he ends up in a wheelchair.
We should not castigate him for this, instead remembering how he has soldiered manfully through his career to bear an England workload of immense proportions.
But we should be frightened, very frightened indeed. Because lots of promising all-rounders to whom Old Freelance is something of a guiding beacon may well follow his example and become the latter day Ronin of the cricketing world, masterless men who ply their trade wherever they can.
The likes of Luke Wright, Ravi Bopara and even Stuart Broad could well be lost to England. NZ rugby has already experienced this phenomenon – play a few games for the All Blacks, up your worth then sod off to the highest dollar in Europe. It’s a national pandemic, sadly, but amusingly keeps them from winning the world cup on a quadrannual basis.
But heaven forbid it should happen to English cricket. We can lose a world cup without this sort of hoohah. So I think the answer is clear – the MCC should dispatch a hit squad – old Deadly Derek himself could lead it, and quietly bring an end to the sorry Freddie saga – they could use a poisoned pedalo – which would send a quiet but firm message to budding all-rounders – play for England or you get it.
In deciding to become a hired gun, Freddie has done no more than indicate that his playing days are numbered, doubtless because his injuries are worse than we know, and he intends to milk what dollars he can out of the Delhi Daredevils, Lashmipur Longdrops or whoever before he ends up in a wheelchair.
We should not castigate him for this, instead remembering how he has soldiered manfully through his career to bear an England workload of immense proportions.
But we should be frightened, very frightened indeed. Because lots of promising all-rounders to whom Old Freelance is something of a guiding beacon may well follow his example and become the latter day Ronin of the cricketing world, masterless men who ply their trade wherever they can.
The likes of Luke Wright, Ravi Bopara and even Stuart Broad could well be lost to England. NZ rugby has already experienced this phenomenon – play a few games for the All Blacks, up your worth then sod off to the highest dollar in Europe. It’s a national pandemic, sadly, but amusingly keeps them from winning the world cup on a quadrannual basis.
But heaven forbid it should happen to English cricket. We can lose a world cup without this sort of hoohah. So I think the answer is clear – the MCC should dispatch a hit squad – old Deadly Derek himself could lead it, and quietly bring an end to the sorry Freddie saga – they could use a poisoned pedalo – which would send a quiet but firm message to budding all-rounders – play for England or you get it.
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