--- description: "If she played the men's circuit she'd be like 700 in the world," McEnroe told NPR in a recent interview. title: John McEnroe: Serena Would Be the 700th Best Men’s Player image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb57a8dd5af970f58/6988d33d096a94305c69e83b/gettyimages-631178734.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Sports](/section/sports/) ## Sports Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [tennis](/tag/tennis/) ## tennis Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # John McEnroe Says Serena Williams Would Be the 700th Best Men’s Tennis Player ## Video: Serena Williams on Her Biggest Influence [Watch (HLS stream): Serena Williams on Her Biggest Influence](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/zdwprGtE.m3u8) (0:58)  _Published 2014-04-24. Serena Williams talks about the importance of family._ by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 26, 2017 12:14 PM CUT  Tennis player John McEnroe plays tennis at the 2016 PowerShares QQQ Cup at Barclays Center of Brooklyn on January 7, 2017 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. Tennis player John McEnroe plays tennis at the 2016 PowerShares QQQ Cup at Barclays Center of Brooklyn on January 7, 2017 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.J. Kempin—Getty Images by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 26, 2017 12:14 PM CUT In an [interview](http://www.npr.org/2017/06/25/534149646/but-seriously-tennis-great-john-mcenroe-says-hes-seeking-inner-peace "undefined") discussing his new book, retired tennis star John McEnroe said that while he believes Serena Williams is the greatest female tennis player ever, she would rank “like 700 in the world.” “If she played the men’s circuit she’d be like 700 in the world,” McEnroe told NPR in response to a question about why he doesn’t call Serena the best player, period. “That doesn’t mean I don’t think Serena is an incredible player. I do, but the reality of what would happen would be I think something that perhaps it’d be a little higher, perhaps it’d be a little lower.” As the [Washington _Post_](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/early-lead/wp/2017/06/25/john-mcenroe-if-serena-williams-played-the-mens-circuit-shed-rank-like-700/?utm%5Fterm=.87e2054afd5d "undefined") pointed out, despite having won 23 Grand Slam titles, Williams herself has made a similar argument in the past, saying as much when asked about playing against Andy Murray during a 2013 appearance on [_Late Night With David Letterman_](http://www.thewrap.com/serena-williams-andy-murray-would-beat-me-6-0-6-0-5-minutes-video-112836/ "undefined"). “For me, mens’ tennis and womens’ tennis are completely, almost, two separate sports,” Williams said. “If I were to play Andy Murray, I would lose 6-0, 6-0 in five to six minutes, maybe 10 minutes.” McEnroe was also asked about a match proposed by President Donald Trump, who challenged the seven-time majors singles champion to [take on one of the Williams sisters in a battle-of-the-sexes](http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/story?id=100632&page=1 "undefined"). He said he didn’t really want to do it, but thought he had a good chance at beating her. “I think I can still play and I think I could still — I mean my kids don’t think I can beat her anymore. Maybe I should get her now because she’s pregnant,” he said. Still, [Williams continues to practice](https://www.si.com/tennis/2017/06/15/serena-williams-pregnant-seven-months-practice "undefined") even while seven months into her pregnancy. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4832543/john-mcenroe-serena-williams/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4832543/john-mcenroe-serena-williams/"},"headline":"John McEnroe Says Serena Williams Would Be the 700th Best Men’s Tennis Player","datePublished":"2017-06-26T12:14:47.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T16:18:44.200Z","description":"\"If she played the men's circuit she'd be like 700 in the world,\" McEnroe told NPR","url":"https://time.com/4832543/john-mcenroe-serena-williams/","keywords":["tennis","Donald Trump","serena williams","Andy Murray","Sports"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb57a8dd5af970f58/6988d33d096a94305c69e83b/gettyimages-631178734.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Maya Rhodan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/"}],"articleSection":"Sports","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb57a8dd5af970f58/6988d33d096a94305c69e83b/gettyimages-631178734.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"2016 PowerShares QQQ Cup","caption":"2016 PowerShares QQQ Cup","creditText":"J. 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