US Open Day 13 – Spellbinding Naomi Osaka Wins First Grand Slam Title; Serena Sees Red In Controversy-Filled Final

At the end of a mind-blowing day, and one of the most controversy-filled Grand Slams finals in history, David and Catherine sit down to run through the events in full.

With emotions running high, the theme of the discussion is the need for nuance. Can we accept Serena as a highly-inspirational role model who is also capable of quite unedifying behaviour? And were all three code violations justified?

Not for the first time this tournament, the incident brought the role of the umpire into question. How can Carlos Ramos be criticised for sticking to the letter of the law? Could he have issued a soft warning? Are different standards applied to men and women?

None of the controversy should detract, however, from the spell-binding performance of Naomi Osaka. Before everything kicked off, she was beating Serena handily. In fact, was her brilliance the root cause of Serena's bad temper?

Has there ever been a better performance on debut in a Grand Slam final? We knew Osaka could strike the ball cleanly, but she also proved she can handle an occasion. This was her moment and she seized it. 

There will be daily editions of The Tennis Podcast throughout the US Open fortnight. 

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