- Serena Williams has been defended by Whoopi Goldberg after the American tennis player was accused by Dominic Thiem of having a "bad personality."
- Goldberg said, "Listen man … don't nobody know who you are" on a recent episode of the US talk show "The View."
- Renowned men's player Roger Federer said he understood Thiem's frustration after he was kicked out of a recent French Open press conference to make way for Williams, who had lost a match.
- Goldberg said Federer should know better.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
Whoopi Goldberg has defended Serena Williams after the American was accused of having a "bad personality" by a male player at the French Open.
Williams was thrashed by fellow American Sofia Kenin in the competition's third round on Saturday, and left the Philippe Chatrier court to address the media at a press conference.
But the press room was already in use with Dominic Thiem talking to the media following his victory over Pablo Cuevas on the Suzanne-Lenglen court earlier in the day.
Williams, L'Equipe reports, did not want to wait. She apparently asked event organizers to put her in another room "now," but her request could not be fulfilled as all rooms were occupied. Williams was reportedly ready to leave the media center entirely but was told Thiem could be evicted to make way for her, something she allegedly said was "rude" but did not stop from happening.
Thiem was told to leave the room, something he later complained about to Eurosport Germany, saying Williams had shown a "bad personality."
Renowned men's player Roger Federer seemed to side with Thiem. "I understand Dominic's frustration," he said, according to Eurosport. This is because tennis etiquette dictates that whoever is still in the tournament gets priority with press obligations, so they can then focus on their next match, which might take place the following day. The athlete who has been eliminated from the competition may not have another match for weeks.
But Goldberg supported Williams. During a June 3rd episode of the ABC talk show "The View," Goldberg said nobody knows who Thiem is, and Federer should know better.
"She wanted to get her press conference over as soon as possible and, y'know … because she did not win. I would feel the same way. So they ended the press conference of men's player Dominic Thiem early to accommodate her, but he wasn't happy apparently and said it shows that Serena has a bad personality.
"Listen, man, don't nobody know who you are!"
"You may be big in the tennis world but this is a big deal that she was out this early. People want to know what's happening, how she doing, and I don't think she wanted to talk to anybody about losing. I don't think that was her plan. Don't blame her. Stop being a bonehead."
She later added that Federer "should know better" than to defend Thiem, and not defend Williams.
Watch the segment below:
Thiem, who has been on-form on clay this season, remains in the French Open and contests a quarterfinal on the Suzanne-Lenglen court Wednesday against Karen Khachanov.
Federer plays 11-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal in the semifinal on Friday.