code violation audible obscenity

they don’t say it out loud
        but it shows in how they announce your name
in how they nitpick the state of your bench / your comments
        you were never meant to compete
in the script your name is scribbled next to the journey man / the pigeon

code violation racket abuse

they have a freedom you aren’t afforded
        a liberty they never bestowed on Ashe
things have changed / things haven’t changed
        their attempts to ostracize / to supress still linger
they break rackets / kick boards / berate umpires
        they calling it having a personality / it’s not when you hit trick shots

code violation black person

Nana Afadua Ofori-Atta is a writer and poet from Takoradi, Ghana and a huge tennis fan. Her writing has appeared in Lolwe, Fantasy Magazine, AFREADA and elsewhere. She can be found on twitter @afaduawrites.