Ex-Commentator Sues ESPN Over Venus Williams 'Guerrilla' Comment

LOS ANGELES - A tennis analyst fired by ESPN last month sued the network Tuesday in Los Angeles, alleging his description of what he called Venus Williams' "guerrilla" style of play during the Australian Open was misinterpreted by some critics and that he was wrongfully terminated.

Doug Adler's Los Angeles Superior Court complaint also alleges intentional infliction of emotional distress and seeks unspecified damages.

Although tennis experts commonly use the term "guerrilla tennis" to describe aggressive tactics, ESPN "bowed to the Twitter universe of haters and those ignorant of tennis who thought (Adler) used the word gorilla to describe Venus Williams that day," according to his lawsuit.

ESPN Senior Vice President Mark Gross and the network's vice president, Jamie Reynolds, are also named as defendants.

"The irony is that Adler called everything correctly and in a professional manner, whereas ESPN did not -- they recklessly made the wrong call," said Adler's attorney, David M. Ring. "It was not only political correctness gone overboard, but also a cowardly move that ruined a good man's career."

The 17-page lawsuit also alleges that other employers have shunned Adler following ESPN's firing of him shortly after the Jan. 18 Williams match.

"Guerrilla Tennis" was the name of a Nike TV commercial in the 1990s featuring Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras.

"Obviously, (Adler) saw that commercial many times and the phrase became widely used by those who actually understood tennis vernacular and followed the sport closely," the lawsuit says.

Peter Bodo, senior editor of Tennis magazine, used the term in a 2012 profile of Polish tennis player Agnieszka Radwanska, according to the lawsuit.

Adler lives in Los Angeles and was an All-American player at USC. He was hired by ESPN in 2008 and covered the U.S. Open, French Open and Wimbledon. He alleges the network ruined his sterling reputation cultivated over 40 years, during which he announced some 3,000 matches.

"It was shocking to be treated this way by folks who've known me forever," Adler said in a prepared statement. "Anyone who has ever competed in sports knows exactly the meaning of the term I used. Period."

- City News Service / Image via YouTube Screenshot