Gladys Knight and Dionne Warwick Have Fun With Viral US Open Mix-Up

By Daniel S. Levine

Gladys Knight and Dionne Warwick had plenty of fun on Twitter Thursday after they were mistaken for each other during ESPN's broadcast of Serena Williams' match against Anett Kontaveit at the US Open. During the match, ESPN broadcasters Mary Carillo and Chanda Rubin appeared to mix up the two living legends. There were many other celebrities at the match, including actor Anthony Anderson.

A viral tweet included a brief clip from the ESPN broadcast, in which Carillo excitedly yelled out Knight's name. However, the camera was showing Warwick, 81, instead. Rubin later tweeted that she happened to see Knight, 78, on her monitor in the booth, which was different from what audiences saw at home.

"Too bad I was initially looking at the court (where Auntie Gladys was in the stands) and not our program monitor that showed Ms. Dionne," Rubin wrote. "Mistake was immediately corrected."

Warwick, whose Twitter wit is unmatched, posted a hilarious response to the mishap. She jammed in as many song references into one sentence as she could. "Hi, I'm Gladys Knight... and instead of taking that midnight train to Georgia, I won't walk on by but will say a little prayer for you," Warwick tweeted.

"Dionne and I have been sisters for a long time and I hope she is as honored to be mistaken for me as I would be her," Knight wrote. "I'm sure it was an honest mistake. It was a blessing to be in the house to see Serena's greatness." Knight also retweeted Warwick's tweets to assure everyone that there are no hard feelings between the two.

Warwick and Knight weren't the only stars at Williams' match Wednesday. Knight also shared a photo with Black-ish star Anderson from the stands. Zendaya and Tiger Woods have also been cheering Williams on. Hugh Jackman and his wife, Deborra-Lee Furness, attended Monday's match.

Williams' matches have been hot tickets in New York since she announced plans to leave professional tennis after the tournament. During her 27-year career, Williams has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, the second-most of all time, behind only Margaret Court's 24 wins. She also won 14 major women's doubles titles with her sister Venus Williams. Her most recent US Open victory came in 2014. 

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