Serena Williams Doesn't Remember Her Infamous Referee Confrontation

Serena Williams Being Serena HBO

It was a moment that will likely go down in infamy. Three months ago, during the U.S. Open, Serena Williams played against Naomi Osaka and lost. In the match, Williams spoke out against chair umpire Carlos Ramos, who eventually gave her a game penalty for verbal abuse. It is a moment that is hard to forget, but Williams believes otherwise.

According to Serena Williams, she doesn't remember exactly how things went down during that infamous moment with the referee. And she doesn't want to remember it, either. Instead, she wants to focus on herself and keep the noise outside. In a recent profile piece, she addressed the controversial moment for the very first time. Here's how the professional athlete explains her mindset during this time.

I don't really remember how it went, to be honest. I've been purposely not thinking about it. I don't watch TV at all. I try to keep myself in a bubble as much as I can. I just don't want to be involved in other people's opinions. Let them live how they want to feel.

The confession came during Serena Williams' recent profile piece with GQ. In addition to not remembering exactly what happened, Serena Williams has taken many steps to cancel out the noise. She has deleted the social media apps on her phone, and she claims that she doesn't watch television. Instead, she keeps her focus on the game, as well as on her family life. She lives in a "bubble," Williams says, and she likes to keep things inside there.

While Serena Williams has kept quiet about this infamous outburst until now, the professional tennis player has been opening up more about her life. After a recent tennis loss, Williams opened up about suffering from postpartum depression after giving birth to her daughter, Alexis Olympia. She has also talked about the challenges of returning to tennis after becoming a mother. On the lighter side of things, Williams has talked about her friendship with none other than the Duchess of Sussex herself, Meghan Markle. And she also revealed herself recently in order to promote a noteworthy cause.

More specifically, Serena Williams posed topless in order to promote breast cancer awareness. The PSA video also found the professional athlete singing Divinyls' single "I Touch Myself," which proved to be a rare intimate moment for the professional athlete -- even as she continues to open up.

We should expect to hear more about Serena Williams in the near future. In the meantime, when it comes to the latest news and updates in film, television, video games, pop culture and a whole bunch more, you can be sure to check back in with CinemaBlend, where we'll provide the scoop.

Will Ashton

Will is an entertainment writer based in Pittsburgh, PA. His writing can also be found in The Playlist, Cut Print Film, We Got This Covered, The Young Folks, Slate and other outlets. He also co-hosts the weekly film/TV podcast Cinemaholics with Jon Negroni and he likes to think he's a professional Garfield enthusiast.