Ban unlikely for cursing Serena

REGGIO CALABRIA, Italy – Top-ranked Serena Williams will receive a hefty monetary fine but will not be suspended for her US Open tirade, the president of the International Tennis Federation believes.

Grand Slam administrator Bill Babcock is due to hand his recommendation to the Grand Slam committee, which will likely announce the sanction Monday or Tuesday.

“I don’t think (an Australian Open ban) would make much sense, because it would penalize the people handing out the punishment,” Francesco Ricci Bitti told The Associated Press on Saturday. “For the Grand Slam committee to exclude her from a Grand Slam doesn’t seem likely.” (AP)