John McEnroe: Serena Williams Would Rank 700th Against Male Players

Even if a woman is the best in the world, she’s no match for a man—according to John McEnroe

Speaking to NPR’s Lulu Garcia-Navarro Sunday, the retired tennis legend said that Serena Williams, who is currently the top-ranked female player in the world, is nowhere close the best overall pro. “If she played the men’s circuit she’d be like 700 in the world,” said McEnroe.

He also implied that could win a match against Williams, though he said he doesn’t really “want to do it.”

Garcia-Navarro seemed skeptical: “You really think at 60, you could possibly beat Serena Williams?”

McEnroe qualified his statement: “Maybe I should get her now because she’s pregnant.” (Recall that Williams won the Australian Open while two months pregnant.)

Despite their discussion about a potential McEnroe vs. Williams match-up, Garcia-Navarro and the retired pro seem to agree that the idea of comparing male and female athletes is counterproductive. “Is being the best athlete in the world about pitting men against women? By that metric women can never be best,” tweed Garcia-Navarro after the interview:

Is being the best athelete in the world about pitting men against women? By that metric women can never be best. (1/2)

— Lulu NYT (@lourdesgnavarro) June 25, 2017