Serena Williams fined for violating tennis code of conduct
New York, Sep 10: Tennis star Serena Williams has been fined $17,000 by the organizers of the US Open for committing three violations of the code of conduct during the second set of the women's final, which she lost on the weekend to Japan's Naomi Osaka 6-2, 6-4.
Williams was sanctioned in the second set by the judge seated at the net, Portugal's Carlos Ramos, for receiving help - in the form of a hand signal - from the box of her coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, breaking her racket against the court surface and verbally abusing the judge by calling him a 'thief', reports Efe news.
Williams, who was fined on Sunday, called the judge's decision "sexist" at a later press conference, saying that she had seen male players calling umpires "several things" but they were not penalized for their behaviour.
Her actions eclipsed the triumph of the 20-year-old Osaka, who became the first Japanese tennis player to win the US Open and a Grand Slam single's tourney.
The US player, 36, who was competing in her 14th US Open, failed to win her seventh title in the season's last Grand Slam event, a win that would have been the 24th of her career, thus allowing her to tie the legendary Margaret Court of Australia in terms of tourney wins.
Williams received $1.85 million for playing in the final. Her fine will be deducted from that amount.
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IMEC momentum to boost Karnataka exports amid global trade disruptions
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka’s exporters are set to benefit as the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) gathers momentum as an alternative to traditional maritime choke points, a senior tax official said, pointing to shifting global trade routes amid ongoing geopolitical tensions.
Addressing a seminar on “Navigating Geo-Political Challenges: Policy Measures and Preparedness to Build Resilience,” Kotraswamy M, Commissioner of Central Tax, Bengaluru North, said disruptions around key routes such as the Strait of Hormuz and the Suez Canal had underscored the need for more reliable corridors.
The event was organised by the Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce (BCIC) in association with the Indian Institute of Materials Management.
"Owing to geopolitical tensions in West Asia, connectivity was hindered with Strait of Hormuz and Suez Canal as the choke points. Now with India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) gaining momentum as alternatives to the choke points, exporters from Karnataka and other states in India stand to gain in the global trade market," Kotraswamy said.
With this development, several critical choke points, especially fuel-related disruptions are expected to increase, he said adding IMEC is now gaining momentum as a more efficient and more reliable pathway, instead of depending on routes like the Suez Canal, the Strait of Hormuz, or even the Cape route, which are costly in terms of freight and sailing time, Kotraswamy said.
He added that exporters were also seeing gains from policy measures under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime.
“As exports are treated as zero-rated supplies under GST, the effective tax incidence on exports is zero per cent, allowing businesses to claim refunds on input taxes paid,” he said.
Kotraswamy noted that over 90 per cent of refund claims were now processed within seven days, compared to 15 to 30 days earlier.
He further said recent recommendations had enabled automatic refund processing and reduced documentation, cutting compliance costs by 20 to 25 per cent and easing working capital pressures.
Highlighting the state’s export performance, Prince Mehra of EXIM Bank said Karnataka is the fourth-largest exporter in India, contributing around seven per cent to the country’s merchandise exports and recording a compound annual growth rate of 7.8 per cent from FY19 to FY25.
“In FY25, Karnataka’s exports stood at USD 30.5 billion, driven by telecom instruments (17.3 per cent) and petroleum (14 per cent), followed by electrical equipment (five per cent), RMG/apparel (4.7 per cent), electronics (4.2 per cent), coffee (4.1 per cent) and pharmaceuticals (3.8 per cent),” Mehra said.
He added that the state ranked sixth in NITI Aayog’s Export Preparedness Index 2024 with an untapped export potential of USD 24.4 billion.
Emphasising the need for adaptability, K Ravi, senior vice president of BCIC, said in today’s volatile global landscape, resilience is no longer optional as it is a strategic imperative. Geopolitical challenges are reshaping trade dynamics and compelling businesses to rethink risk, cost, and continuity.
Sivasankari Murugan of ECGC highlighted support mechanisms available to exporters, including insurance products and policy interventions such as the RELIEF Scheme and the Export Promotion Mission.
She said such measures reflected a strong commitment to safeguarding industry competitiveness, and added that platforms like the seminar help stakeholders build the collaborative mindset required to navigate uncertainty.
