Serena Williams, since turning pro in the late 90s, has dominated the women’s circuit for over two decades. Even though she had her slumps in between, she has engraved her name in the minds of tennis enthusiasts and pundits as one of the best players of all time. This is something that the iconic American player, John McEnroe, also agreed to.

In an interview, he talked about Serena Williams’ gameplay, and why she is the best. Moreover, he also talked about how she had to go through several hurdles and why people scrutinized her actions more than his actions.

John McEnroe on Serena Williams’ struggle

Anyone who is a tennis enthusiast knows about the on-court antics of John McEnroe. However, in a 2013 interview, he acknowledged that he had it much easier than Serena Williams. The seven-time grand slam champion talked about his temper and said, “Serena’s way better than I am”.

He further added, “I think she’s held herself and she’s needed to – obviously being a woman and, second, being looked at closer because she’s black, so I think she’s got a couple of strikes against her before she even starts.”

READ MORE: ‘Learn to Separate That’ – Serena Williams Once Explained the Difficult Thing She Had to Endure While Facing Sister Venus

McEnroe acknowledged the struggles the player had gone through. He also appealed for some leniency for her. He said, “I think she should be cut some slack.” However, he reminisced about her incident in the 2009 US Open and didn’t find a reason for her to be excused.

When Williams lost her temper

At the US Open 2009, a lineswoman called a foot-fault against Serena Williams during her semi-final match against Kim Clijsters. The player had an on-court outburst at that time. However, she apologized publicly for her behavior and also congratulated Kim Clijsters for winning the match. Talking about the same incident, McEnroe said, “I think she would tell you she deserved to get faulted. I think she’s done an extremely good job.” He compared himself with her and jokingly said, “I mean, certainly compared to me.”

On-court debacles and outbursts are not uncommon in tennis. Tennis is a sport that eventually brings out the raw emotions of the players on the court sooner or later. For players like McEnroe, the emotions were uncontrollable during matches. However, for players like Chris Evert, the emotions hardly ever came.

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Even in the current era, we have players like Nick Kyrgios and Alexander Zverev whose emotions come out on more than one occasion. At time, it establishes a rapport with the fans and makes the sport more personal, while during others like the spitting incident of Kyrgios, it crosses the line.

Who do you prefer? The players who show raw emotions on the court or the ones that are calm and composed? Let us know in the comments.