It was the US Open in 2009. Serena Williams was the defending champion and one of the favorites to win the tournament. She was up against Kim Clijsters in the semifinals.

At a critical juncture in the match, the line judge called for a foot fault against Serena. Subsequently, Serena lost her cool and had some strong words to say to the umpire. Following this incident, she received a point penalty and eventually lost the match. Clijsters went on to defeat Caroline Wozniacki in the finals to win the tournament.

After the match, Serena apologized for her actions. Further, she had some things to say about the tennis legend, John McEnroe.

Serena Williams on idolizing John McEnroe

Following that incident, the former World Number 1 revealed that she idolized the infamous enfant terrible of tennis, John McEnroe. Reacting to this, McEnroe said, “I guess she idolized me for the wrong reasons, apparently. I feel like I’m on the hot seat now…. I can’t defend the indefensible.”

READ MORE: ‘Gotten Under the Skin’ – John McEnroe Strongly Believes That He Could Have Defeated Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Novak Djokovic in His Heydays

A few years back, Serena was involved in another such incident at the US Open. During the 2018 US Open final, she had an altercation with the chair umpire, Carlos Ramos. As a result, she received code violations and eventually lost the title to Naomi Osaka.

Serena’s disappointing Wimbledon campaign

Last month, the 23-time Grand Slam champion bowed out of the Wimbledon Championships in the first round. She suffered a heart-breaking loss against Harmony Tan of France in three sets. Nonetheless, Serena put in a great fight in her first singles match after a year on the sidelines.

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Serena will be returning to action shortly after her Wimbledon disappointment. She will play in the National Bank Open in Toronto next month. She will be accompanied by the likes of World Number 1, Iga Swiatek, Naomi Osaka, and Bianca Andreescu.