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Tennis umpires are pushing to unionize after Carlos Ramos—the umpire at the center of the storm surrounding Serena Williams at the US Open, was “thrown under a bus” by the powers that be.

The Times of London reports that there is a growing concern that umpires feel they were “not supported by the USTA” on several occasions and cite one anonymous source claiming that umpires are considering boycotting matches played by Williams.

The source tells The Times that some umpires believe that Ramos was “thrown to the wolves for simply doing his job and was not willing to be abused for it” and that they are considering “to refuse any match assignments involving Williams until she apologizes for vilifying Ramos and calling him a ‘liar’ and a ‘thief.’”

 

As noted by Yahoo, Williams was assessed three code violations during the loss to Naomi Osaka. Ramos warned her against receiving coaching early in the second set, which she protested.

Williams explained her anger in the post-match media conference, saying Ramos “never took a game from a man because he said ‘thief.’”

Adding, “For me, it blows my mind, but I’m going to continue to fight for women. The fact that I have to go through this is just an example for the next person.”

Williams was later fined $17,000 for her outburst.

“The umpiring fraternity is thoroughly disturbed at being abandoned by the WTA,” Ings told ESPN. “They are all fearful that they could be the next Ramos. They feel that no one has their back when they have to make unpopular calls.”

The International Tennis Federation released a statement Monday in support of Ramos.

“Carlos Ramos is one of the most experienced and respected umpires in tennis,” the statement reads. “Mr. Ramos’ decisions were in accordance with the relevant rules and were re-affirmed by the U.S. Open’s decision to fine Serena Williams for the three offenses.”

Ramos spoke publicly Tuesday for the first time since the match in an interview with Tribuna Expresso in his native Portugal.

“I’m fine, given the circumstances,” he said. “It’s a delicate situation, but a la carte arbitration does not exist. Do not worry about me.”

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