Follow us on Google Discover Tracy Austin has now shared who she thinks Serena Williams should have faced in a Battle of the Sexes match 15 years ago.
This is the hot topic in tennis at the moment outside of the WTA and ATP Finals, with Nick Kyrgios’ match against Aryna Sabalenka drawing widespread intrigue.
Love it or hate it, their upcoming exhibition match, to be played at the end of December, is generating huge interest, with many keen to see how this clash plays out.
It pits the women’s world number one against the injury-prone but supremely talented Kyrgios, and naturally, this match-up has drawn scrutiny.
And yet, despite this, Austin has now insisted that the Battle of the Sexes match she always wanted to see consisted of Serena and an American male superstar.
Serena Williams told who she should have played in a Battle of the Sexes match
Speaking on Tennis Channel, the pundit was initially rather dismissive about Sabalenka and Kyrgios’ event.
Highlighting the historical significance of previous matches similar to this, Austin claimed: “With Billie Jean and Bobby, they played straight up, but Bobby Riggs was 55 years old, and Billy was about 30. So that was the difference.
“And when Martina played Jimmy Connors in ’92, Jimmy Connors, he had only one serve, and Martina had half the alleys as well, so it was wider, and Connors still won.
“So I don’t know, I just don’t think it’s, uh. Now, maybe because we’re thinking Nick’s not a current player, he hasn’t played in a while and Aryna’s number one in the world…
“You know what my dream match-up was? I’m going off the menu right now? About 15 years ago, I wanted Serena Williams and John McEnroe. Talk about Spicy. Ooh, that would have been spicy.”
Sabalenka has sent a request to Novak Djokovic ahead of her Battle of the Sexes bout, which will only add to the intrigue of this event.
What has John McEnroe said about a Battle of the Sexes match in the past?
John McEnroe, unsurprisingly, has been vocal about his thoughts on a proposed showdown between himself and Serena Williams over the years.
In fact, in 2015, he even revealed that Donald Trump nearly managed to put together the event, but could not offer a big enough pay package to tempt him.
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At the time, McEnroe was 56, although he remained present on the senior tennis circuit. Serena, meanwhile, was 34 and chasing a calendar Grand Slam. The former insisted he would have won.
Just two years later, McEnroe then said of Serena: “If she played the men’s circuit she’d be, like, 700 in the world.”
He justified his claims by adding: “That doesn’t mean I don’t think Serena is an incredible player, and I suppose anything’s possible; maybe at some point a women’s tennis player can be better than anybody.
Dear John, I adore and respect you but please please keep me out of your statements that are not factually based.
— Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) June 26, 2017
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“I just haven’t seen that in any other sport, and I haven’t seen it in tennis. If she had to just play the men’s circuit, it would be an entirely different story.”
The seven-time Grand Slam champion finished by suggesting the men and women fuse their circuits and all play one another, after Serena hit back at his suggestion with a plea for ‘respect’.