It has been well over a week since we saw Serena Williams make her return to singles action, and the tennis world is still buzzing over it.
After all, it was a comeback that few had expected, and yet she more than held her own despite eventually losing in three sets to Maya Joint.
Sadly, Williams then had to withdraw from the doubles due to an injury sustained during her first singles match in nearly four years, leaving her sister Venus once again without a partner.
Many have debated whether the 44-year-old had justified her Wimbledon wildcard with this showing, with some arguing that it could have been better used on a young talent seeking a breakthrough opportunity.
John McEnroe, unsurprisingly, has rather strong opinions on this topic.
John McEnroe says whether he thinks Serena Williams deserved her Wimbledon wildcard
Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live last night, the American tennis legend was fielding questions from the public.
In relation to this topic, particularly after Williams was criticised for her conduct after her match, one fan asked: “In light of Arthur Fery’s success at Wimbledon would it not have been better in the women’s draw to give a wildcard to a British player rather than Williams who has had her career?”
What do you think of Serena Williams not speaking to the media at Wimbledon now you know the full story?
This prompted McEnroe to claim: “They did give a wildcard to British players. They gave six or seven of them. Tell that to the BBC and NBC over the ratings when she played, the highest ratings they have ever had on a Tuesday.
“What you’re saying if Roger Federer decided that he wanted to come back and play, we should give it to a British wildcard instead of Roger Federer?”
The fan then made a comparison, arguing that had Federer returned and taken a wildcard spot, he could have prevented Arthur Fery’s remarkable Wimbledon run.
Marion Bartoli disagreed with this, arguing: “That would not have happened because Arthur Fery was a lot higher ranked and basically the lowest ranked British player who received a wildcard was 600 in the WTA rankings.”
McEnroe then added: “Whoever the 600 guy was, he would take it from. We are going to have to respectfully disagree with you. That is a very unusual thing, let’s be real.”
Serena Williams’ Wimbledon return broke viewing records
As McEnroe briefly mentioned, Serena Williams’ return garnered huge interest, unsurprisingly.
In fact, ESPN actually posted record viewing figures for a match of this significance, with it being just a first-round clash at Wimbledon.
They revealed that an average of 1.8 million viewers, with a peak audience of 2.1 million, tuned in to watch Serena’s comeback.
This set an all-time record for a first-round Wimbledon match aired on ESPN.
