Saturday, September 1, 2007

Umpire tells Williams to put her notebook away

Serena Williams has a long-standing habit of bringing notes with her onto the court. She reads them during the changeovers and between sets, for they are little reminders to her about the kind of mental attitude she needs to have. The notes are strictly motivational; at the Australian Open, the "notes" amounted to one word--the name of her murdered sister.

Yesterday, chair umpire Damian Steiner told Williams to put her notes away during a break in her match against Vera Zvonareva. There is no rule against having notes on the court, as long as the player brings the notes herself. Steiner, apparently unfamiliar with the rules, eventually reversed his decision.

Said Williams: "Well, it's not like I'm Harry Potter and my dad can magically give me notes to read."

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