INDIAN WELLS, California—While much of the competition probably doesn’t mind the massive hole in the draw that has been left in the wake of the Williams sisters’ boycott of Indian Wells since 2002, most of the tennis world views the same hole with considerable regret. As much as we’d like to forget it, the incident – and its aftermath – is forever etched upon our collective tennis memories, haunting us and making us think where it all went wrong and what, if anything, could make it better.
But all the deep thinking in the world won’t change the reality of the situation. The Williams sisters’ boycott of Indian Wells will forever be a mark on an otherwise utopian tennis event.
In 2001, at the epicenter of a media maelstrom that surrounded obstinate Richard Williams and his two supernova daughters, a wound was opened. The Williams family was treated with so much disdain – on their so-called home soil no less – that it pulled at the hearts of anyone who witnessed it. At the time, it wasn’t clear if the wounds could ever be mended. Sadly, 9 years later, it appears that they never will be.
That is where we stand today. The undeniably ugly truth of the incident and the hurt that it caused the family is undoubtedly still there, festering. Even as the Williams sisters have gone on to enormous heights, and Indian Wells has continued to garner a global following, it is there.
As much as we’d all like to see the Williams Sisters out there competing at Indian Wells (and more importantly acting as symbols of forgiveness and healing) the chances of that happening are about as thin as the lines of communication that currently exist between tournament director Steve Simon and the Williams family. Simon said last year that even though he’d love to see the Williamses back, he’d never beg a player to play. Meanwhile the Williamses are resolute – they don’t want to come back here and be reminded of the emotional angst that they endured.
So we have a stalemate. Maybe, given that all parties involved have moved on and are doing quite well on their own, thank you, it’s better to leave it alone. Maybe it’s better to keep it all swept neatly under the rug and keep moving forward with what needs to be done.
Is it?
No matter how many good intentioned people there are that want to see the Williams sisters come back to Indian Wells (yes, Richard can come too) because they believe that at its essence, the incident in 2001 was nothing more than an episode that became wildly blown out of proportion by the media and a few reactive ticket holders, there is no magic wand that can be waved to wipe away what actually happened. The ugly and completely unnecessary controversy following Venus’ last second withdrawal will always be a stain on the pages of Indian Wells lore.
And while many of us like to believe that changing the future – by eschewing personal hurt in the name of a higher purpose (what’s so funny about peace, love, and understanding?) – is the next best thing to changing the past, the odds of it happening are about as good as Serena calling a foot-fault on herself in a Grand-Slam final
In a perfect world this unfortunate controversy would never have happened: Venus wouldn’t have struggled with injury and withdrawn 10 minutes before her semifinal against Serena (perfect worlds don‘t have injuries). 15,000 tennis enthusiasts wouldn’t have felt cheated out of their chance to see a historic match between two young tennis phenoms, nor would they have acted in such a vulgar and unsympathetic manner (people behave properly in perfect worlds). Elena Dementieva wouldn’t have made her snide comments to the media about how Richard Williams decides who wins each time the sisters play (she later claimed to be kidding).
But the world is not perfect. In fact the world, as was proved at Indian Wells in 2001, is pretty messed up. The fact of the matter is that there will never be a legitimate excuse for the type of behavior that occurred when Richard Williams and his daughter Venus took their seats before Serena’s final that year. They were indiscriminately booed at, hissed at, and reportedly threatened.
As much as I’d like to see the gap bridged between Indian Wells and the Williams sisters, it is still hard for me to stomach the actual events that occurred, and therefore it is hard for me to envisage any real or lasting reconciliation between the two. I can’t imagine what it must have felt like to be Serena, young and impressionable and just a 19-year-old at the time, or Venus, deemed by many to be culpable for the whole affair when she was probably just acting on the advice of doctors and her father, when the insults rained down from the crowd.
Why did tennis-loving Americans want to make it harder on these girls than it already was? Because they spent $50 on a ticket, and didn‘t get their full entertainment value for it? Is that all it takes to bring out the worst in people, or was there some sort of embedded bias against the Williams sisters from the start?
I wish we could say it was all water under the bridge, but this is clearly a case of there being no bridge over the water.
In a perfect world the tournament’s new owner, business magnate Larry Ellison, would recognize the opportunity that lies before him. He has already hit the ground running with his Hit for Haiti benefit, which showed just how humane the sport can be when it sets its mind to it. But if he really wants to make the Ellison era legendary for Indian Wells, he should seriously consider stretching a big fat olive branch over to the Williamses camp.
Haiti is a great cause, and Indian Wells is doing a commendable job by lending significant resources to it, but we’ve got scars that need to be healed right here in our own back yard.
And there’s never been a better time than right now, even in an imperfect world such as this.
Chris Oddo is a freelance tennis writer and blogger who is based in San Francisco, California. He is a regular commenter at OTB under the moniker The Fan Child. You can follow his blog at http://thefanchild.blogspot.com/.
On the Baseline’s live coverage of the 2010 BNP Paribas Open is brought to you by Grand Slam Tennis Tours. Become a fan of Grand Slam Tennis Tours on Facebook to enter to win a trip to the US Open!
Oh my ***, this article is so true!!! Finally somebody writes about the boycott in a very proportional way of thinking. Exactly like what I always think. For me the most important aspect of the 2001 controversy was the fact that it happened in the Williams OWN HOME SOIL!!!! What could make people did something that bad to their own fellow citizens??? What??? I’m from Indonesia, and I love the Williams so much. Everytime I watch the 2001 IW final match on youtube, it still puts me in tears, and anger. Seeing how they booed Venus, Richards, and Serena during the final and the trophy presentation! It was too painfull, even for others than the Williams. Their boycott is so understandable. But personally, I want them to return there, at least for once. Whatever happens, it will prove and fix so many things. If they crowds still booe them then WTA can shut the tournament forever, because ut’s it’s main job to protect their players from demonic behaviour like that. If they welcome the Williams with full of love and supports, it’ll show that IW’s crows have fully regretted their stupid behaviour in 2001. Well, probably those people who carzily booed in 2001 have lived their lives in full of misery in the last 9 years. Let’s just have their a last chance to get their life back before they die. But, the MOST IMPORTANT thing of all, IW official must say a PUBLIC APOLOGY for having. That moron crowds to the Williams family. Otherwise, it won’t work, ever!!!
The Williams sisters will never play Indian Wells again, and nor should they be penalised for not doing so. Their boycott doesn’t make Indian Wells any less valuable a tournament than Miami, nor does their lack of “forgiveness” leave a permanent stain on Indian Wells. In a couple of years, when the Williams sisters have retired, it will be a non-issue.
The situation may be contrasted with the stabbing of Monica Seles, which left a permanent stain on Germany, because its legal system allowed Günther Parche to escape justice and Monica never played there again.
Very compelling article. It’s alll really a shame. But who knows? Maybe, just maybe the Williams sisters will let bygones be bygones and play. It will show a lot of class if they do.
I can’t see the Williams sisters coming back to IW, unless they move the tournament to another state. I’m sure Larry Scott sent a few olive branches over to the Williams sisters when he was CEO of the WTA Tour, but didn’t accomplish much.
Amazing article! Congrats!
I couldn’t agree more with everything you said and I think they won’t nor should come back to IW.
Like you said, it was a painful experience even for the fans, why would they put themselves through that again?
Anyways, I love them and Serena is the greatest playing IW or not.
They won’t play or bring it up .. move on
Great article though .. finally! I’m happy
It is up to them whether to play or not and I think there are 3 ways to solve this issue. First, get that magic wand from Harry Potter with the magic word (something like bulimia nervosa); second, steal that blue flash memory eraser from MIB (with black sunglasses); or third, when the people who involved in that incident feel sorry about it (when you have instinct to hurt, don’t you have courage to ask for excuse?)
The Williams sisters will only play Indian Wells again if the WTA drags them there kicking and screaming. Which won’t happen, because it would create another ugly scene, which no one wants.
The Williams family deserves most of the blame for the 2001 incident. Should the crowd have behaved better? Of course. But it shouldn’t be a surprise that thousands of people crowded into a stadium can sometimes behave like a mob. People were angry because the Williams sisters behaved in a way that looked suspicious.
The Williams’ behavior that weekend fits into a longstanding pattern, where they seem to expect tennis success without respect for tennis institutions, and fan adulation without consideration of fans. Crowd turns on you? It can’t be something you did, it must be racism. Number 2 behind Safina? It can’t be that you only show up at slams, it must be a flawed ranking system. Lost a match? Must be “bad calls”. Get a little fine for physically threatening an official? Must be sexism.
Obviously a lot of people like the Williams sisters. A lot of other people dislike them. They’ve earned much of that dislike with their arrogant, abrasive behavior. Can we stop feeling sorry for them yet?
Great Article:>)
I am a huge Fan of Venus & Serena and Tennis in general now, because of Venus and Serena. They are the reason I am such a Tennis Fan. My whole family either plays tennis, watches tennis and/or attends events around our area and abroad. This year is the first time I have really been able to watch tennis at Indian Wells other than the infamous “Serena Match” (on utube))as IW is broadcasting on Tennis Channel and not just FSN this year. I have had the pleasure of attending Miami. Prior to this all I really knew of IW was it’s the event that Venus and Serena don’t play because of what happened in 2001 and frankly I didn’t care if I never saw or attended a match there ever. All that being said, I wish that they would play this event. It is so Nice. I can’t even imagine people there would have even behaved in such a manner. I understand the sisters not attending this event but it’s hard to believe IW could not have done more to make this right. I know it’s water under the bridge but articles like this one make you think about what a shame it really is that S&V don’t participate in IW and the reasons why they don’t. It’s not fair to any of the parties involved (the Fans, Indian Wells or Venus & Serena.
The problem is that no one has ever agreed on what the “incident” was. The crowd was booing, yes, and that was really most unfortunate, and I’m sorry it occurred. Venus and Serena deserve better. But Richard Williams says that there were racial insults thrown, and no one else has ever come forward to corroborate that. I’m not saying it didn’t occur–I’m just saying that the only person declaring it did was a person not known for speaking that logically.
At any rate, I have always supported the sisters (who both, well over 18, are certainly women, not girls) in their decision to boycott the event. I doubt they will ever go back to Indian Wells, and it is the tournament’s loss, not the other way around.
No, it is the Williams sisters’ loss, because they are denying themselves the honour of playing in one of the greatest tournaments outside of the Majors, the Olympics and the WTA Tour Championships.
Great article, thanks for posting it. Tells a very good story. Should they come back?? I think they should. The story is old and surely they have gotten better at handling problems. The sisters are the ones missing out. Should the WTA force them to play it, no!
Scars, schmars! They had two possible reactions to the unfortunate event almost ten years ago. They could have risen above it and made true heros of themselves. Instead they chose the self righteous road of blame and boycott.
Now that Serena has disgraced herself, her family and her people by a personal racist attack of her own at the US Open, and never made truly honest and honorable amends, she has hung herself out to dry as a self righteous hypocrite. And the media has preferred to judge her by some other standard than the content of her character.
By now, the sisters could have made themselves the darlings of Indian Wells, by showing the power of gracefulness in the spirit of active love of the Rev. Martin LK. Indeed there is a rich African American tradition of overcoming evil with good. A proud, heroic tradition of freedom fighters and martyrs. Here instead we have a self-indulgent, self congratulating bully, Serena, who is no victim of any sort, but a blatant perpetrator. As for Venus, herself much more a lady, she should have caught baby sister up short for this outrage.
Finally, why do they set themselves so sharply against the larger culture? Is it really a black thing? Or more the self-imposed alienation of the thinking disorder of their J-Dub hostility to all the “Kingdoms of this World?” When one can find no good whatever in the flag, political leadership, Christmas and birthdays and the culture in general, why should they be gracious to mere tennis fans?
Venus and Serena will never play Indian Wells and that is clearly evident. Some people believe it is time for them to forgive and heal, but their refusal to return to Indian Wells isn’t an indicator of neither. I believe they have forgiven and have moved on. Maybe, it’s the tournament directors and all those who want to see them play there again, myself not included, are the ones who are wrestling with thid issue, for it is clearly not the Williams sisters. I love them both, and feel they have made a decision they have been able to live with and others need to accept it.
I’m an African American who will be going to IW for the first time to see Andy Roddick in the final, not because he’s white, but because he’s an American!
Serena said after the outrage that aliens would land here before she ever played at IW again, and I support her in that. I remember extremely vividly the feelings those boos stirred in me, a white middle aged woman who was suddenly brought up real close to what black people face every day in this country. How would you feel at being 19 and thousands of people are yelling for your blood? It was shocking then, it is shocking now. Don’t come back, Serena, let that sour bunch of rich old white people “soldier on” without you. They can all go take a flying leap off the top of the tram.
I am so glad there is lots of discussion and discourse going on but here is the reality from a Canadian- and we have had a few hundred years to observe our neighbours to the south when it comes to racism. Everything in the US involving a black athlete or actor or politician is always boiled down to race. In Canada we tend to be a bit more colour blind whereby the colour of the athlete does not seem to register….until the athlete or announcer makes a point of discussing this ‘oh he is the first black baseball manager to win a world series’…oh the Williams are the first black women to win such & such a tournament’….Who cares? I could give a hoot if the athlete is black, white, yellow or pink! Look at the athlete not their colour or race to determine if they are good at their craft and succeed or not – and cheer them on. But please stop commenting on their race or colour as I do not care.
I do care however if the athlete makes threats against a linesperson; I do care if an athlete lies about their use of steroids or other performance enhancing drugs; I care of the athlete rapes a woman in a hotel room; I care if a hockey player hits someone in the head with the intention of causing harm. But I still do not care about their race or colour.
Oh and one more thing – reverse racism does occur on a day to day basis – and it can still be called racism if someone always uses the “racism” card to defend their lack of morality, ethics or class. Please call a spade a spade. Serena is just not a nice gal on or off the court – and it sure as heck is not because she is black. JES
I don’t think the Williams’ should “let bygones be bygones”, as posted by another visitor. They felt that they were treated unfairly, and they are standing up for themselves. If you adopt a cause, you stick with it. The fans were out of control, and neither the chair umpire nor the tournament officials did anything to stop the prolonged abuse. As cliche as this may sound, I’ll say it anyway… “if you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything.” Kudos to the Williams family for standing up for what they believe in.
I have got used to them not being there. I think they’ve made up their mind and we should all move on. And as for “stretching the olive branches” oh my, then I think there are more candidates who were treated harshly by crowds at tournaments. One example is Martina Hingis who was booed at French Open by the crowd and she ended up really distraught losing the match. And nobody apologised to her neither.
Bad Example Marine…Hingis bought that on herself (on the court ) and she was not on home soil. Serena had nothing to do with Venus not playing even if you believe the ridiculous speculation that Richard (not Serena) fixed the matches.
Really? Well, I can see a certain double standard here when you’re saying that in the case of Hingis she brought it upon herself. But Lisa, didn’t the Williams family also brought it upon themeselves in a way by a last-minute withdrawal? Venus was seen practising with Serena the very same day and she was completely fine and after IW went shortly to play another tournament…
So what they did was a bit suspicious.
I saw a bit of that match and I would not say that the crowd was as savage as it is often described. There were a lot of people booing them but also some people cheering them on.
As for the sisters to be angry about it, well, if they don’t want to play, fine, it’s up to them.
I think that there are good and bad moments in the career of every player, not just the Williamses. Others also get booed, get bad calls or are treated unfairly by the organisers and in many cases their voices are not heard at all.
I was there, I never heard a racial slur – just booing. It was a few minutes before the match was to start – when they annouced that she was unable to play – I thought they said a tooth ache. (I would love to know what anyone else hear)
Then she showed up to watch her sister play, no limp, no sign of a toothache, walked down the isle like nothing was wrong. I think the audience was taken back, she was too sick or injured to play. But could walk down the flight of stairs like it was nothing. People were upset – If she had not showed up, it would have passed. It seemed like she didn’t get that $50 is alot of money to most people – and the time they took to get to the event – most from out of town and to not even come out and try, and then show up and later like it was not a big deal. Showed great disrepect for her fans in the stands, who probalby had to work 6 hours in one day to clear the 50 buck for the seats.
I have seen players throw up and return to the courts. Have their back rub downed, their ankles or thighs rapped. But they tried.
If she had just come out and said I am really sorry, and told everyone what was wrong. Or even said I am going to give this a try, It might not work – but I will try. They would have embraced her.
As fans we respect our players and hope they respect us. If you have ever travel across a state or across the county to watch a player and then they pull out at the last minute without even coming out. Everyon knew she was there. Why didn’t she just come out for a few minutes. The girls know they are a big deal to the tennis fans, but the fan felt they weren’t a big deal to her.
I love to watch them play and I am sorry that this was made into somehing it was not. This had nothing to do with Race. The fans were hurt and disappointed And let their feeling be hear, it might not have been the correct thing to do. But I believe mistakes were made on both sides….