"How many people go out and jeer a 19-year-old?" - When Serena Williams was left speechless after controversial Indian Wells treatment from fans

Serena Williams lashed out at the cacophony of boos she received from the Indian Wells crowd during her 2001 final against Kim Clijsters. This is considered to be one of the most controversial moments in tennis history, which led to the Williams sisters boycotting the coveted event for over a decade.

Serena and Venus were set to face each other in the semifinals that year. However, the elder Williams sister didn't play the match resulting in the younger sister receiving a walkover into the summit clash. This series of events led to a huge controversy as people accused their father, Richard Williams, of match-fixing.

When Serena made her way to the final, she was welcomed with an extremely negative reception, and her misses and errors were cheered throughout the final. However, the American powered her way through to score a resilient 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 win to clinch the title. During the post-match press conference, she was asked if she was like an 'innocent bystander' during the situation to which she responded,

"Yeah, I definitely do. I'm just a competitor. I mean, how many people do you know go out there and jeer a 19-year-old? Come on, I'm just a kid."

Richard and Venus, who were in attendance to cheer the 23-time Grand Slam on, were also subjected to incessant booing. When asked if it was more painful to see her family being welcomed with such a harsh reception, the American replied:

"Actually, I think maybe it was. I was, you know, just -- I was like, 'Wow, this is weird. This is not -- this is weird.'"

She was later asked whether race had anything to do with the treatment the Williams family faced.

"People are still kind of struggling a little bit" - Serena Williams on dealing with Indian Wells crowd

Serena Williams & Kim Clijsters - Source: Getty

Giving her thoughts on whether race had anything to do with the treatment her family received, Serena Williams felt though this particular incident had nothing to do with their race, she highlighted that Americans were still facing the problem of racism.

"Race? I think black people have been out of slavery now for just over a hundred years, and people are still kind of struggling a little bit. It hasn't been that long. I don't know if race has anything to do with this particular situation. But in general I think, yeah, there's still a little problem with racism in America," Serena Williams responded.

Williams returned to Indian Wells in 2015, ending her 14-year absence, amid a roar of applause. She was joined by her sister, Venus, a year later.