Serena Williams bolted US Open without Venus after doubles defeat: Fled the scene

After coming back into the tennis spotlight, Serena Williams went out with an Irish goodbye at the US Open.After Williams lost a thrilling first-round women’s double match alongside sister Venus Williams to Hao-Ching Chan and Maya Joint on Friday night, she “fled the scene”, according to “Bounces” voice Ben Rothenberg.Serena walked off the Arthur Ashe court and out of the stadium into a car, leaving behind Venus, who stayed on the ground and went to the locker room as is the standard.

In doing so, the sisters did not participate in a post-match press conference.Per the Grand Slam rulebook, a post-match press conference is required of all players if requested by media.The sisters had been requested, as a pair, by many reporters through the US Open’s media operations system.Yet, within minutes of the match ending, the USTA sent credentialed media a message.“Serena and Venus Williams will not be available for press tonight,” it read.The next day, the USTA told “Bounces” that neither Serena nor Venus will be fined for skipping out on the media.Skipping a press conference without excuse such as an injury or illness is a code violation.

It would be up to the discretion of the US Open to issue a fine and they chose not to sanction the two stars despite Serena’s exit.Rothenberg estimated about 15-20 times when the Williams sisters did not show up to a post-match press conference and only some came with fines, which are normally at Grand Slam events.One instance was a $5,000 fine that Venus was hit with for skipping out on the press after a first-round loss at the Australian Open in 2016.The USTA’s decision lends the idea there is a sense of favoritism for the Williams sisters and that the organization doesn’t see a reason to sour its relationship with them.The sisters previously spoke to reporters in Cincinnati after their first-round doubles loss last month.

Venus also spoke to the media after her late night first-round singles loss in Queens....