"I said 'Be honest if the ball hit you,' she wouldn't even look at me" - When Serena Williams slammed opponent over controversial call at French Open

Serena Williams once lashed out at her opponent, Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez, following a controversial call during a French Open clash.

Williams and Martinez locked horns in the third round of the 2009 French Open. Their encounter took a dramatic turn in the opening set itself, when the American struck a powerful backhand aimed at Martinez's head. Reacting quickly, the Spaniard raised her hands in defense, causing the ball to graze her right arm before landing on the other side of the net.

According to the rules, Williams should have received the point as the ball returned to her side without touching Martinez's racket. However, chair umpire Emmanuel Joseph failed to notice the ball striking Martinez and mistakenly awarded the Spaniard the point, resulting in a crucial break of serve.

Tensions flared on the court over the controversial call, with Serena Williams even giving Martinez an open warning.

"I’m going to get you in the locker room for that; you don’t know me," she said on court (via The New York Times).

Following an extensive discussion with the chair umpire, the American issued another firey warning to Martinez.

"She better not come to the net again," she said.

Although Serena Williams ultimately lost the opening set, she bounced back strongly to claim a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory. Reflecting on her history of contentious on-court incidents during her post-match press conference, the American lamented her tendency to become embroiled in drama.

"I don’t mean for this stuff to happen; it just kind of happens," Serena Williams said. "I’m like one of those girls on a reality show that has all the drama, and everyone in the house hates them because no matter what they do, like, drama follows them. I don’t want to be that girl."

Williams also shed light on her heated exchange with Martinez, revealing that she had asked the Spaniard to be honest about whether the ball had made contact with her. The American claimed that Martinez avoided even looking at her in that moment, and that she sidestepped the issue entirely.

Williams criticized Martinez's conduct, emphasizing that she held no respect for players who failed to maintain their professionalism on the court.

"I looked at her dead in the eye, I said: ‘Why? Just be honest if the ball hit you or not. I mean, hello, it totally hit her. She was just, like, she wouldn’t even look at me. She looked down, and I just have no respect for anybody who can’t play a professional game and just be really professional out here," she said.

Martinez, meanwhile, later expressed her belief that the ball had made contact with her racket as she didn't feel it hitting her body.

"People said it was the body, but if it hit my body, I didn’t feel it," she said.

A brief look at Serena Williams' campaign at French Open 2009

Serena Williams at the 2009 French Open

Serena Williams entered the 2009 French Open as the second seed. She commenced her campaign with a hard-fought 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-4 win over Klara Koukalova.

The American then defeated Virginia Ruano Pascual in dominant fashion, winning 6-2, 6-0. She advanced to the fourth round with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez.

However, Williams was unable to progress any further in the Major as she suffered a narrow 6-7(3), 5-7, 7-5 defeat to Svetlana Kuznetsova in the Round of 16.

Serena Williams won three of her whopping 23 Grand Slam titles at the French Open, triumphing at the claycourt Major in 2002, 2013 and 2015.