By CORY HARRIS -- SportsTicker
 FLUSHING, New York -- Lisa Raymond has worked hard all year to represent her country at the upcoming Olympic Games in Sydney. But a betrayal by a legendary player has left her searching for answers and without a plane ticket to Australia.

 Raymond is the top-ranked doubles player in the world and believed to be a lock for a spot on the United States Olympic tennis team. However, a vague rulebook and a snub by U.S. Olympic women's coach Billie Jean King has prevented Raymond from making the trip Down Under.

 Outlined by the International Tennis Federation, "a maximum of four women may be nominated by any one country," with a maximum of three women competing in singles, and a maximum of two women designated to play doubles.

 The men's Olympic team has a little more flexibility, allowing up to six players, with four being designated for singles and up to six overall on the team, provided that a particular country has doubles players ranked No. 20 or better.

 On July 12, the ITF confirmed to the United States Olympic Committee the players eligible for direct acceptance in singles and doubles, based on the WTA rankings.

 At the time, Lindsay Davenport, Venus Williams and Monica Seles -- three of the top 10 players in the world -- were locks to play singles, while Raymond was ranked No. 1 in doubles. Raymond's Olympic dreams seemed all but a reality.

 "Common sense would tell me if I'm No. 1 in the world in doubles that I deserve to go to the Olympics to play doubles," said Raymond, who expressed her feelings after her first-round singles win today at the U.S. Open.

 Unfortunately, common sense did not prevail as King, who originally stated she would stick to the rankings to complete her team, went against her own word and chose Serena Williams over Raymond to play with older sister Venus in doubles.

 "I guess you could say I was a little misled," Raymond said. "But at the same time, I feel like as the No. 1 doubles player in the world, I deserve to represent the United States in the doubles discipline. I certainly earned it. I'm very frustrated, angry and disappointed both in Billie and the USTA."

 Granted, the Williams sisters have won three of the last five Grand Slam doubles titles and arguably are the hottest and most recognizable players in women's tennis at the moment. Did King take advantage of the Williams sisters' popularity in making her selection, and overlook Raymond's on the-court accomplishments in the process?

 "You would hope when you're making a decision like this that it would be put aside, that it really wouldn't come into a decision," Raymond said. "Yes, it is a 'Dream Team.' Billie got her 'Dream Team.'"

 A former NCAA singles champion at the University of Florida, Raymond has made her mark in doubles as a professional. She has won 18 doubles titles, mostly with partner Rennae Stubbs, and captured her first Grand Slam doubles title at the Australian Open in January.

 "I made it a priority at the beginning of the year (to play on the Olympic team)," Raymond said. "I really focused a lot, after winning the Australian Open, on my doubles and made that a goal of mine. To walk in that stadium during the opening ceremonies with all those amazing athletes, I don't think there are too many experiences that can come close to that."

 After being snubbed by King, Raymond filed a grievance with the USOC. But again her Olympic dream was dashed when an arbitrator ruled in favor of the governing body, claiming that the rules for Olympic nomination are very vague and that King was allowed to have the discretion to pick whomever she wanted.

 "It goes without saying that the rules need to be a lot more black and white than they are," Raymond said.

 Two of the four members of the U.S. Olympic team spoke out on the issue today -- most noticeably Serena Williams -- and expressed regret how the situation turned out for Raymond.

 "It's just disappointing that all of us wouldn't be able to go to the Olympics," Serena Williams said. "Obviously she's a great doubles player. Not everyone can win. You win some, you lose some. Apparently, this is a bad one to lose."

 Davenport, the reigning Olympic gold medalist, took a shot at King, but also defended her decision.

 "She (King) always said `Well, my decision is easy because I'm going off the rankings.' I think that's where the problem started," Davenport said. "Lisa thought that was the way it was going to be.

 "But after the Williams sisters won Wimbledon, I kind of knew there's going to be a problem. How can you not pick the Williams sisters? They've won three of the last five Grand Slams and are a great doubles team."

 With Raymond's Olympic hopes snuffed, her plans for the last two weeks of September are simple.

 "I'm not watching tennis, I can tell you that," she said.