Chang W. Lee/The New York Times
A year ago, after a heated dispute between Serena Williams and the umpire who cited her for rules violations before she lost the women’s final at the United States Open, there were rapid-fire calls for change.
The rule at the heart of the disagreement — that Williams was being coached from the stands, a charge that her coach later admitted was accurate — was derided as outdated, inconsistently applied, and puzzling for fans and players. The chair umpire, Carlos Ramos, was called sexist, but also praised for enforcing the rules as they were written.