Last year, in a muted yet packed Dubai arena, Nick Kyrgios dismantled Aryna Sabalenka 6-3, 6-3 in a controversial, rule-bent spectacle that failed to live up to its billing. The pre-match buzz hinted at a bold upset, but the reality unfolded as a stark, one-sided statement. Four months on, John McEnroe’s brother, Patrick McEnroe, reignited the fire, claiming Sabalenka isn’t close to him either, reopening tennis’s most polarizing debate.
Patrick McEnroe recently addressed a controversial question on his SiriusXM show, Holding Court with Patrick McEnroe. The 59-year-old former player, who retired in 1998 and now works as a commentator, was asked about a hypothetical match against Aryna Sabalenka.
The listener specifically asked how he would fare if he were still in peak physical condition despite his age. “It doesn’t matter to me because it’s just a different game,” McEnroe said.
He then reflected on his own career and level as a professional player. “The short answer is that I was a decent pro as a journeyman type player, ranked most of my career between 30, 75, 100, whatever it was,” he added.
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McEnroe dismissed the comparison and framed it as fundamentally mismatched. He compared it to a high school boys’ basketball team playing against the South Carolina women’s team, suggesting the boys would win easily.
Based on that reasoning, he implied he would also defeat Sabalenka comfortably.
“But if you took the top junior player in the world, the top 17-year-old, and put him up against Sabalenka, they beat her 6-1, 6-1 or something. But again, to me it’s irrelevant. I don’t say that to denigrate women’s, I love women’s tennis. I’ll watch that if there’s a great matchup more than I’ll watch a men’s blowout match. It’s just a totally different game,” he added.
He continued by explaining why people often misjudge these comparisons. “And tennis, for some reason, people don’t look at it the same way because they see Madison Keys or Sabalenka hit their forehand as hard as Sinner. Well, they’re not hitting it with the same spin, and the movement’s different.”
This debate has not been limited to McEnroe alone, as several ATP voices have echoed similar opinions in recent times. For example, former World No. 18 Francisco Clavet shared his view before Sabalenka’s exhibition match against Nick Kyrgios.
In an interview with Clay, Clavet made a strong and direct assessment.
“If Kyrgios plays and intends to win, it’s practically impossible for him to lose to Sabalenka. In a normal situation, Sabalenka has no chance against Kyrgios. It’s true that Kyrgios is a player who gets distracted and is always doing silly things and playing games, and here, as it’s a show, he’ll do even more.”
He expanded his argument by comparing Sabalenka to lower-ranked male players.
“Take the example of Jaume Munar, who is a solid player. If Munar or a similar player plays not to miss, there’s zero per cent chance. And I’d say she wouldn’t even beat a top 400 or top 500 player. In the end, there’s a huge gap. And that’s not to detract from the women or Sabalenka. She’s a great player who hits tremendous shots, often more powerful than many men.”
The debate has been further intensified by past remarks from John McEnroe, once again sparking tension across the tennis community.
John McEnroe echoed that Serena Williams would struggle on the men’s tour
In 2017, a familiar debate made waves in the tennis world. It started when John McEnroe made a controversial claim about Serena Williams and where she would rank if she competed on the men’s circuit.
He made the comments during an interview with a US radio station, NPR. At the time, Williams held the record for the most Grand Slam titles in the Open era, with 23 wins, and had previously been the world number one.
During the interview, McEnroe said: “If she played the men’s circuit, she’d be, like, 700 in the world.” It was a statement that quickly sparked strong reactions across the sport.
McEnroe did try to soften his words somewhat. He said: “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.”
However, he stood by his broader point. He added, “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.”
Serena Williams did not stay silent. She responded directly to McEnroe on Twitter, writing: “Dear John, I adore and respect you, but please, please keep me out of your statements that are not factually based. I’ve never played anyone ranked ‘there’, nor do I have time. Respect me and my privacy as I’m trying to have a baby. Good day, sir.”
Surprisingly, the male player ranked 701 in the world at that time was Dmitry Tursunov. He also weighed in on the debate. Tursunov said he did not believe McEnroe was trying to talk women’s tennis down.
The Russian acknowledged the physical differences between male and female players. He said, “I would hope that I would win against Serena.” He compared it to an athletics question, asking: “Who would run faster, the fastest woman or the fastest man?”
He expanded on his view further. He added, “Tennis is becoming more and more a physical sport, so it’s going to be hard for a woman to beat the men.”
Tursunov also added some personal context to his remarks. He said: “It’s not black and white, there are lots of factors to take into account. Physically, I might not be in the best shape of my life, but as an overall package, I’m much better than my ranking would suggest. She is pregnant, and I’m not.”
Now, the same debate appears to be resurfacing. This time, Patrick McEnroe is echoing it. All eyes are on how the narrative will develop in the tennis world going forward.
