About

Glen - Breakfast Presenter

What a spectacle that unfolded yesterday at the US Open tennis - Serena Williams exploding and self-destructing before our very eyes as she was disqualified for one too many code violations. One way to avoid an outright loss, I suppose. Kim Clijsters certainly took everything that she could throw at her and looked likely to convert those two match points - tantrum or not. Although I’m not sure that foot fault call was correct. I certainly wouldn’t want the full fury of an angry Serena waving a racquet in my face. (Always thought her combination of strength, talent, hostility and no-mercy approach made her the Mike Tyson of women’s tennis - now she’s got some of the language to match.) Not so serene after all. Either way, Clijsters looks set to complete one of the great sport comeback stories of all time - winning only her second Grand Slam title and doing so just weeks after returning from a long lay off from the game to have a child. She may never have a better chance to win though her opponent has nothing to lose either. A Wozniacki win would also be a great story given she’s never made it past Grand Slam quarter finals before. I was cheering for Clijsters yesterday having been courtside to see her play at the Australian Open many times where the crowd was always on her side. I vividly remember the collective heartbreak when she crumbled on centre court at Melbourne Park and blew a solid lead over Serena just as she looked poised to record a rare win against her great rival. Yesterday was the opposite story with all the pressure on Williams as the returning challenger with nothing to lose just kept swinging. Either way, history awaits one of today’s women. Meanwhile, the Federer express rolls on in the men’s. One advantage of this early shift with it’s ridiculous alarm is the opportunity to be in place on the couch when those big games are on cable TV - at least they are live there as opposed to Channel 9’s delayed efforts today - amazing how I can still see Federer and Djokovic slugging it out now - 30 minutes or so after the game finished. It seems ‘live’ isn’t always live.

___

Debbie - Sports Presenter

When replay technology was introduced in tennis, allowing players to challenge line calls, a lot of tantrum chucking was phased out of the sport. And good riddance. But Serena Williams showed yesterday that the occasion can still present itself for a good old fashioned dummy-spit.
Two questions have crossed my mind in the wash up since Serena’s disqualification.
Why can’t Hawkeye be used on the service line so that foot-fault calls can be challenged?
And if Serena had been a slightly-built woman less inclined to use physically intimidating body language, would she have got away with what she said to the baseline official?
Neither of this comments are offered in defence of Serena. She was totally out of line. Well, she put her foot on the line, and then crossed it completely.
My favourite headline on the Serena drama, by the way was FoxSports’ “Game Threat and Match.”
Understatement of the day: Just heard Federer on CNN saying “I tend to play better towards the end of tournaments” No kidding, Rog?