John McEnroe on Wednesday said he regretted recently saying Serena Williams would be ranked “like 700 in the world” if she had to play on the men’s circuit and said he was surprised by the controversy his comments ignited. (Read | Serena Williams asks John McEnroe for respect after comparison to men)McEnroe had previously said that Williams, a record 23-time Grand Slam champion in the professional era, was the best female player ever but then declined to label her the best player overall, prompting Williams to ask McEnroe for “respect”. (Read | John McEnroe refuses to apologise to Serena Williams, comes out with ‘a solution’)“It would have been easier to leave it. (Read | Serena Williams would be ‘like No. “Obviously if it wasn’t for Serena, American tennis would even be in a lot deeper trouble,” he said.

Source: Hindustan Times June 29, 2017 03:45 UTC