Why It's Unfair to Expect Serena Williams to Be Women's Tennis' Savior

Serena Williams withdrew from the WTA Tour Finals weeks ago. However, as the WTA's top players battle in Singapore, Williams remains the biggest story in women's tennis. That's a problem.

It's not a problem for Williams, who even when absent dominates the headlines. Apparently, her absence is a problem for some journalists and former players who seem to hold her responsible for saving women's tennis. 

That's not fair.

Williams is by far the most accomplished woman on tour. She's arguably the greatest of all time. But she's one player, and she shouldn't be held accountable for sustaining the WTA. The tour existed before Williams and will be around long after she retires. 

Since Serena announced her withdrawal, there have been several articles written about the post-Williams era and whether the 21-time Grand Slam champion should be punished for skipping two late-season events. 

Chris Chase, a writer for USAToday.com's "For the Win," went so far as to blame Williams for hurting tennis. He questioned the validity of her injury.  

Chase even complained about Williams having the nerve to look happy while the tennis world laments her absence from the WTA Finals. He wrote, "though the timing may be completely unintentional, posting pictures of her having drinks with Eva Longoria right around the same time her contemporaries, including Maria Sharapova, were getting ready to play is either unfortunate or in poor taste."

How dare she lift a glass when other players are grinding it out (to get a share of $7 million in prize money) in Singapore?

Too injured to play doesn't mean an athlete is on bed rest. It's noteworthy that Chase brings up Sharapova, who until the WTA Finals hadn't completed a match since Wimbledon, yet she tweeted and posted pictures of herself at various events.

Sharapova even pranced around Paris at several events within a week of withdrawing from Wuhan. Shocking? No. Dressing up for a fashion show is not the same as serving a ball 120 miles per hour. 

Never mind that Williams was photographed in Los Angeles with her ankle wrapped. Chase expects her to get out there and save the tour, or else. 

However, if Sharapova announces she's injured, whether she misses several months, as she did this year and in 2013, her health isn't questioned. Because as long as Williams is playing, women's tennis is going to be OK.

Chase went on to declare that although "the sport needs her far more than she needs the sport...doesn’t she owe the sport at least something? It’s made her rich and famous beyond her wildest expectations."

Besides acting as if Williams has committed a crime, Chase implies that tennis "made Serena" instead of the athlete working hard and earning her money.

Such arrogant nonsense, singling out a player who competes in Fed Cup and the Olympics when others dismiss these paycheck-less events. 

Just because she tweets a picture of herself enjoying a drink with a celebrity friend, that doesn't mean she's well enough to play. 

PATRICK KOVARIK/Getty Images

While Chase's comments were among the most ridiculous, they certainly weren't the only statements made that charged Williams as guilty of letting the tour down. 

Tim Gainey, of the Tennis X blog, asked if "Serena should be punished for skipping the WTA Finals?" 

In an article written by New York Times journalist Christopher Clarey, Pam Shriver pointed out that Steffi Graf played in the year-end championships after winning a Golden Slam in 1988. "Not that Graf felt tons of loyalty to the tour, but she played that year and would have been Grand Slam tired," Shriver told Clarey. 

Give credit to Clarey for noting that Graf was 19 in 1988 and not 34 going on 35 like Williams. 

In the New York Times piece, WTA President Micky Lawler told Clarey that the WTA and Williams are "working on some other solution, where she does support the efforts put forth by the Singapore government and does some work throughout the year."

Unless Williams played a part in negotiating deals with the Singaporean government, why does she have to do promotional work throughout the year? 

Victoria Azarenka and Sabine Lisicki shut down their season early too. How much promo work do they have to do? Sharapova has missed the U.S. Open twice in the last three years. Other than promoting her candy line and sponsors, what work was she asked to do?

Until Basel this week, Roger Federer had played one ATP match since the U.S. Open. He skipped Miami, too. No cries for him to pay for that. The difference? As big of a draw as Federer is, the ATP Tour does not live and die on his every move. The WTA clearly depends on Williams to drive interest and ratings.

Ticket prices for the U.S. Open women's final took a nosedive after Williams lost in the semifinals. Television ratings for the women's final (featuring Flavia Pennetta and Roberta Vinci) were down 62 percent from the previous year (Williams vs. Caroline Wozniacki) and 73 percent from 2013 when (Williams vs. Azarenka).

A tour dependent on one player is the WTA's problem. Instead of asking Williams to do makeup work, even if she's injured, how about addressing issues in women's tennis? Maybe the decision to abandon struggling tournaments in the U.S. to add additional events in Asia was a bit hasty. Perhaps the "Rising Stars" campaign is doing little get fans excited about the next generation of players. Maybe instead of putting emphasis on the players, the WTA could focus on improving the level of play. 

How can you have a tennis analysts such as Jo Durie labeling your premier event "devalued," based on the absence of one player? 

Williams rules the WTA, but she doesn't run it. If the tour falters without Williams, that's a WTA problem, not hers.