Serena Williams’ coach, Rennae Stubbs, questioned the officiating after Caitlin Clark was not awarded a foul despite taking a knee to the quad during her game on Thursday.
With just over four minutes left in the first half, Clark drove to the basket and collided with Golden State’s Kiah Stokes. The latter’s knee reportedly struck Clark in the quad, sending her to the floor. No foul was called, and the Fever’s player was left limping with a leg contusion.
In the very next play, the referee blew the whistle to call a defensive foul against Clark’s teammate, Aliyah Boston. Frustrated by the earlier no-call, Clark confronted the referee, Gerda Gatling, and screamed in her face, asking why no foul had been called on the play involving Stokes. Defending the no-call, Gatling told her that she had initiated the contact.
The Valkyries eventually claimed the victory with an 88-75 win. After the match, former basketball player Stacey Dales shared photos of the play on X and argued that the foul occurred during Clark’s drive to the basket. She wrote:
“The foul was here. If you knew hoops, this is a routine and-1 call.”
Stubbs responded by questioning the lack of a foul on the knee contact, writing:
“The reach in, yes, foul. The corked knee, no!😆….”
Serena Williams’ coach, Rennae Stubbs, slammed a fan for criticizing the American’s absence from Wimbledon press
Following her comeback in tennis, Serena Williams played her first singles match at the Wimbledon Championships on July 1, where she lost to Maya Joint. During this match, the American suffered a knee injury, which led to her absence from the post-match press conference. It also forced her to withdraw from the doubles tournament, where she was scheduled to pair with her sister, Venus Williams.
Her absence from the mandatory media session drew severe backlash from fans online. One fan on X said that Williams should have been fined and called her injury a minor excuse.
Taking a jab at the fan and fiercely defending Serena Williams, her coach wrote:
“Well i don’t know what kind of doctor u are but i am stating facts and you have no idea! Everything u said is either incorrect or a lie. And i would go to court to refute your claims! That’s how incorrect they are. Have a good day Bill and just know, your statements are asinine.”
She also added:
“Also by stating ‘why the club signed off on it, i don’t know?’ U got one thing accurate by stated. ‘I don’t know’! Just remember that. Because nobody and i mean nobody is signing off on an approval for no press unless is WARRANTED and acceptable! And stop calling me dear.”
Serena Williams returned to tennis after a break of four years, and her first appearance came at the HSBC Championships’ doubles tournament, where she paired with Victoria Mboko.
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