After Iga Swiatek & Mirra Andreeva incidents, Serena Williams' ex-coach Rennae Stubbs calls for bigger punishments to players abusing balls

Serena Williams' former coach Rennae Stubbs recently slammed Iga Swiatek and Mirra Andreeva for hitting the ball out of the court. The renowned mentor explained how the act was intolerable and therefore urged the authorities to decide a punishment for it.

Former world No.1 Iga Swiatek was booed by the crowd after almost hitting a ball kid in frustration during her loss to teenager Mirra Andreeva at Indian Wells. The Polish star was unhappy during the final set and argued with the chair umpire, complaining that the ball kids were moving behind her while she was trying to return Andreeva’s serve. During her serve, a ball kid tossed her a ball, and she angrily hit it back in his direction.

Rennae Stubbs didn't back down from addressing the ballboy controversy with Iga Swiatek during a recent episode of The Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast. Remembering her days as a professional, the Aussie mentioned how she preferred keeping the rage to herself and not hurting others.

"I do not like to see that. I do not like to see the way Iga, who has also said sorry in her post. But we've got to do a bit. And this is coming from somebody who had a really pretty good temper on the court," she said (14:00).

She also expressed a need for strict rules and punishment for such acts. Stubbs demanded that the authorities should be planning something to stop such incidents from happening frequently.

“I think that we, the tennis administration's, establishments need to make some blanket rules that if you hit balls into the crowd or out of the stadium or things like that, you lose a game or you lose something enormous. Maybe not a walkover immediately, but it has to be punishable with a really big fine, because it's the only way to stop it," she added.

Iga Swiatek is currently in Miami for the Miami Open and here, she will face Caroline Garcia in the second round.

Iga Swiatek disagrees with the "harsh judgements" against her

Iga Swiatek at the Miami Open Presented by Itau 2025 - Day 1 - Source: Getty

Iga Swiatek was quick enough to regret her act of rage and therefore extended an apology to the ball boy. Amid the backlash towards her, the Pole issued a statement where she spoke about the judgement she was subjected to.

"I immediately apologised to the ball boy, we made eye contact, and nodded to each other when I expressed regret that it happened near him. I've seen many players bounce balls in frustration, and frankly, I didn't expect such harsh judgments," she wrote on Instagram.

Justifying her act, she also mentioned how players generally make such mistakes in their careers.

"Working on oneself isn't something you achieve once and keep forever. Sometimes we take two steps forward and one step back," she added.

If Swiatek wins her match against Garcia, she will face either 27th seed Elise Mertens or Peyton Stearns in the third round of the WTA 1000 event.