Tennis legend John McEnroe just can’t seem to dig himself out of the ditch he created for himself over the weekend, when he said Serena Williams would be ranked “like, 700” if she competed in the men’s circuit.
Appearing on Tuesday night’s “Late Show,” McEnroe said even his daughters did not like his comments, but he didn’t apologize or take them back.
“After Wimbledon in 2015, you said, ‘Serena was arguably the greatest athlete of the last 100 years,’” host Stephen Colbert said.
“She’s certainly one of the greatest athletes of the last 100 years,” McEnroe responded.
Colbert asked him why he was backing away when he was giving him an “out” for his offensive comments about the tennis great.
“That was the lifeboat I was throwing you,” the host said. “Why did you have to stab it with a knife?”
The opinionated star of 1980s tennis, known for his on-court catchphrase “you cannot be serious,” did not seem to have much of an answer for that.
Earlier, Williams shut down McEnroe’s comments with two simple tweets. She also debuted on the cover of Vanity Fair topless and pregnant like the fierce badass she is. Game, set and match, Williams.
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