Venus fights back against umpire's claims of coaching

It's been said before: Come for the queen, you best not miss. Venus Williams, long heralded as a mainstay of sportsmanship in tennis—not just women's tennis, but the sport itself—came under fire from a chair umpire late in her three-set victory over Alize Cornet at the French Open. Carlos Ramos—in the chair a round after Cornet's chair umpire did nothing in the midst of her is-she-or-is-she-not-injured dramatics that basically amounted to cramping—accused Venus of receiving hand signals from her coach, David Witt, in the stands.

Venus—alongside the likes of Samantha Stosur among WTA veterans—is a patron saint of sportsmanship, in the words of Mary Carillo. The seven-time Grand Slam champion flatly refused to agree with Ramos' call. Roll footage:

"I'm 36 years old," Venus said. "...I play fair."

She went on to raise her hands in a non-confrontational manner, stating her case for preferring sportsmanship to anything resembling uncouth behavior. "Just FYI," Williams the Elder told Ramos as she walked back to her serve-return position.

Venus got the last laugh, defeating Cornet, 7-6 (5), 1-6, 6-0, and is into the fourth round of the French Open for the first time since 2010. Next up: Timea Bacsinszky, a 2015 semifinalist at Roland Garros.

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