Here’s Serena Williams’s 3-Minute Press Conference After Her Shock Loss Today At The US Open

by Tom Gainey | September 11th, 2015, 5:35 pm
  • 19 Comments

After her stunning defeat, Serena Williams met the media, but it wasn’t for long, running just over three minutes before the World No. 1 pulled the plug:

Q. How disappointed are you?

SERENA WILLIAMS: I don’t want to talk about how disappointing it is for me. If you have any other questions, I’m open for that.

Q. How well did she play today?

SERENA WILLIAMS: I thought she played the best tennis in her career. You know, she’s 33 and, you know, she’s going for it at a late age. So that’s good for her to keep going for it and playing so well. Actually, I guess it’s inspiring. But, yeah, I think she played literally out of her mind.

Q. What wasn’t working from your side?

SERENA WILLIAMS: I don’t think I played that bad. I made more unforced errors than I normally would make, but I think she just played really well. She did not want to lose today. Neither did I, incidentally. But she really didn’t either.

Q. You have been so adept at pulling yourself out of precarious positions throughout this run. Was there any moment where you said, I know I can do this? Was there a moment where you said, Maybe I can’t?

SERENA WILLIAMS: No.

Q. A lot of pressure for you…

SERENA WILLIAMS: No. I told you guys I don’t feel pressure. I never felt pressure. I don’t know. I never felt that pressure to win here. I said that from the beginning.

Q. You felt tight, though; is that fair?

SERENA WILLIAMS: I mean, I made a couple of tight shots, to be honest, but maybe just about two. But that, I think, is just for me in any normal match you make two tight shots. Other than that, I don’t think I was that tight.

Q. Do you think there is a (photographer interference) of her game that made her different than your other opponents thus far in the Open?

SERENA WILLIAMS: No. I have played everyone that came to the net this tournament. She had a couple of slice; everyone I played had slice. So, no.

Q. How did you feel going into the third set? We have had so many three-set victories during this run. Did you still feel you were going to win the match going into the third or did you feel very different?

SERENA WILLIAMS: Of course.

Q. Third set looked like you were trying to fire yourself up so much and calm yourself down. Were you trying to find the equilibrium of where it worked for you as far as…

SERENA WILLIAMS: No, I was just trying to win points at that match and win the match. Last questions?

Q. How do you get over all — what’s the key to just forget about it?

SERENA WILLIAMS: Anyone else want to ask a different question than that?

Q. You said prior to the tournament you took so much happiness from the fact you did your second Serena slam.

SERENA WILLIAMS: Yeah.

Q. Let’s focus on the positives. Is that where your head is at right now?

SERENA WILLIAMS: Well, thank you. Like I said, I felt very happy to get that win at Wimbledon, you know. I did win three Grand Slams this year. Yeah, I won four in a row. It’s pretty good. Yeah, so it’s definitely the positive. Thank you.


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19 Comments for Here’s Serena Williams’s 3-Minute Press Conference After Her Shock Loss Today At The US Open

Skeezer Says:

Thiught she handled this as well as she could have. This was a very tough loss for her, no doubt. Good thing she can still go home and see all her Grand Slam trophys to make her feel better! Think the media asks some unfair questions at times;
“So How do you feel….”…really wtf?


WTF Says:

Biggest upset in tennis all year, and it doesn’t even get its own story on this site. How sad.


RogNadFan Says:

Ironically, this is the most gracious she has been when losing. Bar today, I have never seen any of Serena match (high stake one obviously), that was without some dirty drama or controversy when she was losing.


MMT Says:

If that’s gracious, then I’m a Hercules. She’s not the first person to suffer a tough loss, and of course she was petulant, impatient, and almost completely disingenuous, in the press conference…as usual.


skeezer Says:

MMT,
But she was Hercules. Gracious? I thought so. She praised her opponet.
If ever someone was a favoriteto accomplish where Serena was at, it was her. However, it became obvious the mental burden magnitude of the record books became obvious. 1rst loss in 38, yes 38 Grand Slam matches vs opponet ranked outside top 40.
1rst person to suffer a tough loss? Show me a comparisan of the magnititude of this loss. Compared to what?


Ahfi Says:

Plenty of jealousy. Let players be what they are as long as they are not abusing rules or doing underhanded stuff against their opponents. I have read here certain players on the men’s side described as humble and I just shake my head – a player who barely shakes hands when he loses because he doesn’t believe he should lose to anybody is anything but humble, in my opinion. I hardly watch Serena but let her be. Boy, could you imagine our lives on camera??? Enough!


skeezer Says:

No disrespect to the Italian, but Serena beat herself today. Over emotional, she could not rise above it all today. It seemed as though she expected to cruise, and when pushed, she assumed it would take little effort to push back. But it took a Serena effort, not just let her opponet lose it. She had the ability to easily win, but let the whole thing become a bigger burden than it needed to be. Se la vi, she won multiple Slams this year, can’t win em all.


RogNadFan Says:

MMT,
I said most gracious, so relative to the previous losses. But glad that you also think that way. Disingenuous is the word that perfectly describes her, 99% of the time. Those tiny words of credit to her opponent this time was what was ironic.

But still I feel for her coz, tho I dislike her solely because of her disingenuousness (which has pushed me away from watching her awesome game), I was hoping she would get this one.


Jack Lewis Says:

Passive aggressive would be another word. She’s been on tour for how long? She can’t answer a few dumb questions by the press… She’s not the first player to lose a grand slam match, she could reflect on all her successes and look less like a brat about it. Event the questions she answers amount to: Nah, you guys have no clue, what you are saying has no relationship with what was going on but I can’t be bothered to give a better answer and enlighten anyone…


Backhand Slice Says:

Prima Donna, Diva behavior both on and off the court. She got beaten by a cunning, creative opponent. Oh no! She beat herself or… it was someone in the stands. Bull!


RogNadFan Says:

skeezer,

I totally agree. another thing, that’s really negative in her attitude is that acting so persecuted on the court; and making the biggest scream on a dull point, rather than a scintillating one. Just spending so much energy on so called ‘firing herself up’ as the pundits utter time and again. I don’t think that works in situations with the most pressure. Exerting that negative energy in non-relevant situations just eats her up when pressure is very big. like yesterday.


RogNadFan Says:

JL, that would be another word. agreed. Never seen any good interview after her loss. So, no surprise at all there. And the journalist actually know that before heading to the room.


WTF Says:

She said she wasn’t nervous or feeling any pressure, but I don’t believe it. She has no business losing to Vinci. An unseeded player and reaching her first GS final at 32.


vbplayer3 Says:

Serena didn’t even have enough class to stay on the court in tribute to the great match and championship won by Roberta Vinci. I’ve never seen a player up and leave after the championship before but I guess I should not be surprised. I AM a little surprised that the gutless commentators didn’t have the balls to call her on it, tho.


MMT Says:

Skeezer – one cannot compare misery – she has no more lived in another’s shoes to giver herself (or others to give her) the right to take her loss so much worse than losses taken by others. She was graceless and cantankerous for no other reason than she lost.

She claimed she felt no pressure (nonsense) that Vinci’s slice didn’t affect her at all (she had nothing to do with it) that she played out of her mind (actually as you pointed out, Serena played poorly) and her insistence that she only lost because Vinci played such an exceptional match (I don’t believe it was – I think the exception was how poorly she played) was just drivel.

And when asked a perfectly reasonable question about how she feels about the loss, she responds angrily and petulantly as if the question were inappropriate or invasive or insulting. I just don’t like her attitude at all. I must also admit that the coronation pageantry of ESPN’s presentation of the whole tournament strained my patience as well, particularly juxtaposed against Serena’s attitude – that too I find unbearable.


Observer Says:

Simple: Poor loser.


MMT Says:

I may be harsh, but take note of this from Chris Chase of USA Today: here he makes a perfectly reasoned case that:

1) if you’ve got time for the press when they fawn all over you, you should have time when they ask what went wrong (they’re not your cheerleaders, although she thanked a reporter for asking a “positive” question about her incredible year – that is not their responsibility to make her feel better about her day)

2) By comparison, other players who have lost were far more accommodating and generally are.

3) She has a (long) history of exceptional petulance.

And note how desperately he has to qualified his entirely measured, cited and logical critique:

“This is not a post to say Serena Williams is a bad person or that she’s not worthy of your adulation. Kids should certainly look up to her as a role model for both athletics and life. But they should also realize role models aren’t perfect and that we all have flaws — Serena’s come out on the court, which, in the long run, is a far better place than anywhere else.”

This is, no doubt, intended to placate the apologists (not you Skeezer – I know you’re just being reasonable) who conflate any criticism with Serena of hatred of Serena, which is done specifically to discredit it, no matter how sensible it is. So if you critique Serena in the blogosphere, and someone accuses you of “hating” (on) her just ask the simple question:

What is a reasonable critique of Serena? You’ll hear crickets before you get an answer.

I’m sick of it.


Renee Says:

Stop the hating.

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