Serena Williams may well be the greatest female tennis player of all time, but John McEnroe says he could still take her.
The four-time U.S. Open singles champ is currently 56 and playing on the PowerShares senior tour.
“I believe that I could still take her,” McEnroe said on ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live.’
Williams, 33, will attempt to become the first woman since Steffi Graf in 1988 to win the calendar Grand Slam when the U.S. Open begins Aug. 31 in Flushing Meadows, N.Y. She owns 21 career Grand Slam singles titles and can tie Graf at 22 — second on the all-time list — by winning her third straight U.S. Open title.
McEnroe said Donald Trump tried to pair him and Serena 15 years ago.
“Fifteen years ago Donald Trump … made an offer which I felt like was not enough,” McEnroe said. “And I think he was humoring the two of us. And Serena, she’s got a lot to lose by losing to an old fart like myself. And I’ve got a lot to lose because if I lose to, God forbid, a woman, then I’m not allowed in any men’s locker room for the next 15 years, or possibly the end of my life.”
Maybe McEnroe could take on Williams in a special event after the women’s final on Sept. 12. Alternatively, Kimmel suggested they pair the tennis match with a rematch between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao.
“I don’t think I could take her in the ring,” McEnroe said. “I think I could take her on the court.”
