John McEnroe has set off a firestorm in the tennis world by invoking a tired refrain about Serena Williams — specifically, how the 23-time Grand Slam winner would stack up against men’s players — to promote his new book.
McEnroe said he would place Williams “like 700 in the world” if she played on the men’s tour.
“Best female player ever — no question. If she had to just play the circuit — the men’s circuit — that would be an entirely different story,” McEnroe told NPR as part of a tour to promote his new book, “But Seriously.”
“Maybe at some, a woman can be better than anybody. But I haven’t seen it in any other sport and I haven’t seen it in tennis.”
The ATP Tour rankings only cover the top 500, and the No. 500 spot is currently held by Temur Ismailov of Uzbekistan.
Williams, 35, won the Australian Open in late January while approximately eight weeks pregnant. She later announced she would miss the rest of the 2017 season.
McEnroe, a seven-time major winner, granted Williams an edge in mental toughness against some men’s players who would crack under pressure.
“The reality of what would happen on a given day is Serena could beat some players, I believe, because she is so incredibly strong mentally,” McEnroe said. “She could overcome some situations where players would choke because she’s been in it so many times, so many situations at Wimbledon, the US Open, etc.”
That’s how Nick Kyrgios, the spiritual heir to McEnroe as enfant terrible of the men’s tour, got looped on this attention-grabbing talking point. Australian TV host Tony Jones said he knows just the head case who would be vulnerable against Serena.
“I agree with [McEnroe] on one point: I think she would beat Nick Kyrgios,” Jones said of his countryman. “But he touched on something that is more important, especially when you’re playing something like Nick Kyrgios, who’s brittle above the shoulders — it’s a mind game as well. Her mental strength alone would see her get the better of someone like Nick Kyrgios — I’d back her.”
Kyrgios showed he was quite sensitive to the suggestion, volleying back via Twitter.
With News.com.au