Serena Williams' silence does no-one any favours - sexism needs to be discussed
First thing's first, this is not a call for Serena Williams to apologise for her behaviour during September's US Open final.
Williams, as you will no doubt recall, was given a game penalty for an accumulation of on-court coaching, racket abuse and verbal abuse that included calling umpire Carlos Ramos "a liar" and a "thief". She added on court that Ramos was motivated by sexism, before repeating the accusation in her post-match press conference.
The incident divided tennis. Some believe she should publicly say sorry to Naomi Osaka for spoiling her moment of victory; others feel she should make peace with Ramos; those like John McEnroe, and presumably Serena herself, are dismissive of the idea Williams has anything to feel bad about. To many, Williams was a hero for raising the issues of sexism and discrimination.
The person we've really wanted to hear from in the months since is Serena. Unfortunately, a response has proved elusive - with Williams resolutely shutting down the debate.
First, there was the press conference at an exhibition event in Abu Dhabi in December where reporters were told not to ask about what happened in New York. One did anyway, wondering whether it was a topic Williams was keen to avoid. "I don’t avoid anything. I just don’t have time to talk about that," she responded.
Williams then opted against a pre-Australian Open conference - as the 16th seed it was not obligatory - and when she did face the media on Tuesday night shut down the question straight away. "I, like, literally have no comment," was Williams response to being asked a far from incendiary question about her coach Patrick Mouratoglou and the broader issue of on-court coaching (It was Mouratoglou's coaching gestures during the US Open final that set the whole train of events in motion).
A comment on Osaka and Ramos would be welcome, but Williams' silence is so uncomfortable because the issues around sexism she raised in New York are critical both to the sport and to society more broadly. As Andy Murray and others have alluded to, there is a huge amount of sexism in tennis, and there needs to be more discussion about it. For that reason, it was encouraging to hear Williams in her post-US Open final press conference say: "I’m going to continue to fight for women."
In innumerable ways, Williams is doing that. But why not use the platform of addressing the world's media in a press conference to talk once again about the sexism she believes she experienced in New York, and the issue more widely? Williams is an extremely powerful and articulate voice on the subject, and has the chance to speak about it again when not in the pressure cooker of a grand-slam final.
Personally, I would find that a more interesting topic of conversation than her outfit, which took up the second and third questions of Tuesday's press conference. It seems a shame Williams can answer these dubious questions but "does not have time to talk about" what happened in New York.
On issues of sexism and so much more Williams is a role model to millions of people, who hang on her every word. Surely shutting down questions and refusing to be drawn on such a major talking point doesn't set the best example?
