A couple of people impressed me this past week ... and I didn't expect it from them. Tennis player Venus Williams was playing a second round match against unranked Karolina Sprem. The score was very close, but it shouldn't have been. Williams should have rolling over Sprem without trouble.
They went into a second tiebreaker in the third set. Somewhere during the tiebreaker, the umpire awarded a point to Sprem that should have gone to Williams. Watching a tape of the match, it appeared that Sprem may have been the only person at Centre Court who realized the error.
She gave her friends in the crowd a puzzled look but said nothing. That's OK, it wasn't her responsibility. You might have expected Williams, her father, someone in the crowd, or another official to question the call...the rules allow that. But no one did.
She went on to win the tiebreaker and the match, eliminating Williams from the tournament.
It was what happened later, or rather, what didn't happen, that was impressive. Serena Williams did not blame the bad call for her loss. She took responsibility for it herself.
She played poorly, and admitted as much. She said, correctly, that in tennis, the outcome does not hinge on one point. If she had played better, That single point would not have been important.
Even her father, who is the ultimate Stage Mother in the world of professional tennis when it comes to his two daughters, echoed Venus' sentiments. He did not rant and rave, as I had expected him to do. Instead, he even contacted the umpire and offered his support.
My opinion of the Williams family has improved.
While watching the match, NBC commentators Dick Endberg and John McEnroe spent a lot of time talking about how poorly the Williams sisters, Serena and Venus, have been playing lately. (Although Serena made it at least to the semi finals in mid-week)
They seemed to agree that the reason probably can be found in the wide range of other interests in which both women are involved. Clothing and home furnishing design, not to mention commercial endorsements in TV and print ads.
All these things often wind up distracting sports phenoms.
It seemed as though Mssrs. Endberg and McEnroe were offended by the deterioration in play of the two American women. It was as though they felt that Venus and Serena have an obligation to play well and win tournaments.
But do they?
Isn't their only obligation regarding their sports performance to themselves?
Do they owe anyone else a tournament championship? Is their worth based solely on "What have you done lately?"
If either or both sisters chose to devote their attention to fashion design, charity work or auto mechanics, it's their choice.
Obviously, their success in professional tennis gives them the notoriety and financial flexibility to pursue other career paths. That's one of the benefits they earned when they worked so hard at becoming outstanding tennis players.
The option of playing badly and not having to apologize.