Sports

Sisters Williams boycott Indian Wells Tournament

by Yuliya Talmazan | September 3, 2008 at 01:57 pm

4046 views | 0 Recommendations | 3 comments

Starting in 2009, Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) will make it compulsory for world’s top 10 tennis female players to attend tournaments in Beijing, Madrid, Miami and Indian Wells. Being in the top 10, sisters Williams will have to abide by these rules or risk losing ranking points and missing out on some serious cash. As a rule, Serena and Venus Williams have no problems following WTA’s mandates, but not when it comes to Indian Wells Tournament, which turned nightmare for Serena Williams in 2001 when she was booed in the finals over her sister’s knee injury withdrawal 10 minutes before the match between two sisters started. Venus's withdrawal is believed to have been mediated by sisters’ father and coach Richard Williams to give victory to Serena. Sisters Williams seem to have vowed not to set foot on the courts of Indian Wells ever since. With the new WTA rule in place, missing a mandatory tournament will guarantee sisters Williams suspensions from next two major tennis tournaments. Considering sisters Williams usually make it to the finals of any given tennis tournament, they will be missing out on ranking points and big money prizes. Perhaps most importantly, their absence at Indian Wells will be disappointing for their loyal fans who like to see them play at as many tournaments as possible.

The sisters were due to play in the 2001 semi-final there but Venus withdrew with a knee injury ten minutes before the scheduled start. That announcement was jeered, as were Serena and her father, Richard, throughout the final two days later.

The Williams family said that they would never return; nor have they. Scott has attempted to act as a go-between, but both sides have been unwilling to bend and so the chances are that, in 2010, the sisters - who were due to compete against each other for the seventeenth time in last night's US Open quarter-finals - will be suspended from the Miami tournament that they have won eight times between them.

By taking zero points for Indian Wells, and Miami and Madrid in 2010, it would be hard for the Williams sisters to remain highly ranked, hurting seeds in future events but putting them outside the top 10 and later bans.

WTA announced that they are not going to adjust the rules for individual players, while the father of Williams sisters threatens the WTA Tour that he will take legal action if it tries to force his daughters to play in this tournament.

113

0 See all footage | View Slideshow

Share: email story | add to any | | facebook | stumbleupon

recommend This comment thread is now closed

JeffHuang

at 14:30 on September 3rd, 2008

Mandatory shows at tournaments. Weird concept.

Easiest way for the Williams sister is to fake an injury prior to the Indian Wells tournament. Everyone knows they are faking it, but nothing they can do about it. Better yet, fake a head injury. Those are impossible to detect.

sauronlivez

at 05:51 on September 4th, 2008

I think the men's tour (ATP) has certain mandatory tournaments, The Masters Series events. So this is not without precedent.

sauronlivez has contributed a photo to this story.

Oman (not verified)

at 23:16 on July 3rd, 2009

If you accept that one Williams sister pulled out “to give victory to Serena ´ then that would imply that Kim Clijsters was also a member of what you are suggesting was a Tournament

fixing attempt.