“Glad We Don’t Have Umpires”: Shaun White Once Felt Relieved, About His Sport, After Watching US Open Tennis Match

Athletes often attend other sports events to watch other athletes perform at prominent meets. Sometimes, these athletes may even belong to a different sport. Shaun White witnessed a similar incident when attending the women’s singles final of the 2018 US Open.

At the time, the snowboarder did not think much about the match. But he soon found out he was attending one of the most dramatic events in tennis history. He learned why and he tweeted about it as well.

What did Shaun White post after attending the tennis 2018 US Open?

In 2018, White decided to attend the US Open final for women’s singles along with his ex-girlfriend, Sarah Barthel. But the event turned out to be different than what the snowboarder had in mind. However, given the unexpected turn of events, he experienced something completely new.

Shortly after the match began, drama ensued on the court. It was a lot since such events are far-between in the sport. However, one thing led to another, and it soon turned into a big clash between one of the players and the chair umpire.

The player was Serena Williams, who was contesting her 24th career Grand Slam singles title at the time. She was up against Naomi Osaka, a newcomer to the global meet, with a chance to win her first major victory. However, everything did not go accordingly during the match. Moreover, three violations on Williams’ part marred the finals.

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Following the match, the five-time Olympian took to Twitter to describe the experience. He tweeted, “Went to the @usopen this past weekend… first tennis match I’ve ever been to. Just gonna say, glad we don’t have umpires on the halfpipe #USOpen”

What was the controversy about?

The 2018 US Open women’s singles final was rife with controversy because of Williams’ three code violations during the event. The first strike came when chair umpire Carlos Ramos warned the tennis player after her coach gave her a thumbs up from the box.

Visibly upset by the violation at Ramos, she demanded an apology from the umpire. Claiming she would rather lose than cheat. Unable to make peace with the warning, she was visibly upset by the decision.

However, things deteriorated when she smashed her racket following consecutive double-faults. It led to a second code violation and a point penalty. The loss of a point angered Williams further. At this point, she took to name-calling, and tournament referee Brian Earley had to step in to interfere.

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Following this, the umpire levied a game penalty. Osaka made the best of the opportunity to win the match. It was her first victory in a major meet, but it was upsetting for the athlete as she had to collect her trophy amidst boos from the crowd.