"I can't control God" - Venus Williams recollects cold exchange with chair umpire after being blamed for time violation
Venus Williams recently recalled her frosty remarks to the chair umpire during the 2021 Emilia-Romagna Open, one of the most iconic moments of the American's tennis career.
Williams played Anna Karolina Schmiedlova in the first round of the Parma-based tournament two years back. After claiming the first set 7-5, the then 40-year-old Williams was in a good position to best her opponent.
However, things took a turn when heavy winds troubled proceedings at the Tennis Club Parma. Williams found it hard to adjust to the conditions and it often forced her to delay her serve.
With the American slowing down the game, the chair umpire warned her for time violations. Displeased with the judgment, Williams furiously stated that the wind was not under her control and that the umpire should talk to "God" instead.
"I can't control God. I'm just saying that wind blows and there is nothing I can do about that. I can't control God, talk to him," she said to the chair umpire.
Williams took to social media on Monday (March 20) to reshare the iconic memory after one of her fan accounts on Instagram posted it.
"Yeah that part...," she fondly highlighted the moment, along with a shrugging emoticon, on her Instagram stories.
With heavy winds tormenting Williams' play that day, she lost control of the game, eventually succumbing to a three-set defeat (5-7, 6-2, 6-2) against Schmiedlova.
Venus Williams shares update on her hamstring injury
Venus Williams recently updated her followers on the hamstring injury that she picked up after the ASB Classic at the start of the year. The former World No. 1 has been undergoing treatment for the past two months, continuing her efforts to regain complete fitness.
In a recent video posted on her YouTube channel, Williams divulged the progress of her recovery.
"This is week 7 of my injury. I'm probably not rock-bottom, but I'm not at the top for sure. At least I'm not bottom down anymore," the 42-year-old expressed.
Williams admitted the severity of the hamstring injury, acknowledging that there is a long way ahead to get back on tour again.
"We've worked through some really tough injuries and I've gotten back from those and so this one is actually a tough injury and hamstrings are always a little challenging and the fact that I had a significant tear in it, it's going to be a long way," she added.
Venus Williams claimed a straight-sets win against Katie Volynets in the opening round before falling to Zhu Lin in the Round of 16 at the WTA 250 event in Auckland.