Australian Open women’s tennis storm erupts as Basil Zempilas rejects ‘sexism’ claims

NZ Herald

27 Jan, 2024 06:55 PM2 mins to read

Basil Zempilas.

Perth Lord Mayor Basil Zempilas has faced criticism after a comment he made regarding the Australian Open women’s tennis final on Saturday went viral.

Zempilas, a seasoned sports presenter with Australia’s Channel Seven for nearly three decades, was caught in an unexpected ‘hot mic’ incident prior to a press conference discussing his political aspirations with the Liberal Party in Western Australia.

Unaware that his microphone was live, Zempilas engaged in a brief exchange with Channel Nine reporter Michael Genovese about the upcoming women’s Australian Open final between Aryna Sabalenka and Qinwen Zheng.

In the circulating clip on social media, Zempilas inquired, “Tennis is on tonight, isn’t it?” Genovese confirmed, “Ah, yeah, the female final,” to which Zempilas remarked, “It’s a reserves game, then.”

Attempting to clarify his comment, Zempilas added, “I say that having been there obviously,” likely alluding to his past role as a sports presenter at Channel Seven, which held broadcasting rights for the Australian Open before the Nine Network took over.

Before Zempilas could elaborate further, he appeared to realize his microphone was on, signalling the imminent start of the press conference. “OK, all right,” he said, glancing awkwardly at the camera.

The clip sparked a social media frenzy, with accusations that Zempilas had demeaned women’s tennis. In response to the uproar, Zempilas released a statement insisting that his words were misconstrued. According to him, the conversation with Genovese revolved around the challenge of presenting the news during a major sporting event, with Zempilas referencing Genovese’s news broadcast as the ‘reserves game’ due to potentially lower viewership when compared to the tennis.

“I need to make absolutely clear the conversation I had with @9NewsPerth reporter @GenoveseMichael today is being reported totally incorrectly,” Zempilas stated on X. He clarified that his remark was directed at the competition between reading the news and the tennis broadcast, not at denigrating the tennis itself.

Zempilas further defended his stance by sharing a video of the complete exchange with Genovese, emphasizing the context of their discussion. Genovese also supported Zempilas’ version of events, corroborating that the conversation had been misunderstood.