I saw something on the newsreel yesterday which caused my heart to ache. And it's not okay. It's simply not okay.

Sloane Stephens is a 28-year old American tennis player. Last Friday, she lost her third round match at the US open. A day later, she shared on Instagram that she had received more than 2,000 abusive messages and comments on her Instagram profile from people who are upset about the loss.

I saw a few of those hate-filled messages, and they made my blood boil. Some of them are so disgusting I won't dignify them by reprinting them here.

While I can understand the feelings of perplexity and helplessness accompanying the defeat of one's favorite sports team or player, I still don't get the reasons some people go to the extent of directing abusive messages to the players. These people need to get a life!

Do they think Stephens intentionally threw the game and lost it just to play with their emotions? This sport is her life. She has dedicated her life to tennis and has been playing the game since she was nine years old.

And when you think about it, she lost the game to another player that's currently ranked higher. A win for her in that match would have been considered an upset. But these bozos did not think about that. In fact, they do not think!

That's why I know that the people sending hate at her for the loss are simply inconsequential people who are looking for significance in their lives. Unfortunately, they're looking for it in the wrong places. They will never find it.

Their lives are full of hatred, so they spew hate with impunity at the slightest opportunity. I'm so glad with how Sloane Stephens responded - with so much class. Here's a portion of her response:

This type of hate is so exhausting and never-ending. This isn’t talked about enough, but it really freaking sucks. I’m happy to have people in my corner who support me. I’m choosing positive vibes over negative ones. I choose to show you guys happiness on here, but it’s not always smiles and roses.

I hope we can learn to respond with such grace and class when we're attacked for no reason, instead of having a knee-jerk reaction to offenses. Granted that you and I may not have the popularity of Sloane Stephens, so our attacks may not be that public. Still, we can learn a thing or two from her gracious response.

More importantly, we need to extend grace to people who disappoint us. For many of us sports fanatics, we must remember that the games come with win-loss propositions.

Players and teams usually engage in sporting activities to win. I think this is their intention most of the time. If they lose, they're most likely already beating themselves up for it. We shouldn't pile on the misery with hatred retorts. If anything, we should shower them with encouragement.

Still, the reasons we stoop low to behaviors which denigrates and disparages those we should be encouraging continues to baffle me.

Why do you think we do this? Drop your comments below.