Tennis legend Margaret Court has broken her silence on the drama surrounding the ‘GOAT’ debate with recently retired Serena Williams, claiming the American star ‘never admired her’, despite holding the record for most Grand Slam titles.
The 80-year-old is considered by many to be the greatest female player of all time (GOAT) after winning 24 slams and a total of 192 titles in an illustrious career.
Williams stopped just one stroke behind Court’s record, although in the run-up to the US Open she bizarrely claimed that she had “already broken the record”, citing the fact that 13 of Court’s victories came in the amateur era.
The Aussie previously declined to comment on Williams’ claim that she was in fact the greatest female player of all time, but enough was enough on Sunday.
Serena Williams (left) and Margaret Court (right), pictured together in 2016, are two of the greatest female tennis players of all time
“Serena, I’ve admired her as a player, but I don’t think she’s ever admired me,” Court told the Telegraph.
When Williams bowed out of the US Open last week, and all tennis; Stars of all walks of life, be it film, tennis or icons like Oprah Winfrey and Michelle Obama, rushed to congratulate her on being the “greatest of all time.”
It was a stream of content unmatched for a female athlete, with even the organizers of the US Open flashing “the greatest of all time” on the stadium’s electronic tickers.
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Iconic TV host Oprah Winfrey praised Williams after her retirement
Again, this is despite Court winning the most Grand Slams.
Considering her entire record in the Major events – singles, doubles and mixed – Court has won 64 games against Williams’ 39, a huge difference between the pair on the biggest podiums.
But Court, and her excellent track record, have been completely obscured and almost wiped out of history over the past decade.
Margaret Court holds the Australian Open trophy, something she won 11 times in 2020
This is likely due to her controversial and outspoken views, especially after she tried to lead the vote against the legalization of same-sex marriage in Australia, then announced she was boycotting Qantas for their support of the LGBTQI+ community.
The Australian tennis legend and Pentecostal minister said she endured “a lot of bullying” over her beliefs; and while controversial and hurtful to many, they are not illegal and certainly do not change what she has achieved with tennis.
Although Martina Navratilova, a great tennis player and gay woman, called her views “frightening,” Court refuses to back down — insisting that her beliefs should not influence the “GOAT” debate.
‘I became a Christian when I was the number 1 in the world. You’ll never change me from that,” she said.
Margaret Court has finally broken her silence and insisted she should be declared the ‘GOAT’
One of Williams’ main points of why she should be considered the best is that some Court’s Slams were won before the “Open era” where professionals and amateurs mixed up.
“There are people who say I’m not the GOAT (the best of all time) because I didn’t meet Court’s record, which she held before the ‘Open era’ that started in 1968,” Williams said. Fashion prior to the US Open.
She also claimed that having a baby (her daughter Olympia is 5) destroyed her chances of winning more Grand Slams.
“The way I see it, I should have had more than 30 grand slams. I had my chances after I came back from childbirth,” Williams said.
“I went from a caesarean section to a second pulmonary embolism to a grand slam final. I played while breastfeeding. I played through postpartum depression.’
Serena Williams wears a custom jersey with the anagram GOAT, which refers to Greatest Of All Time
The court refuted that argument, saying that she too had children during her tennis career and would much rather have played in this generation.
‘I came back after two babies! “After the first baby, I won three out of four slams. And Serena hasn’t won a slam since then,’ she said.
“I would have loved to play in this era, I think it’s so much easier. As amateurs we had to play every week because we had no money. Now they can take off whenever they want and fly back whenever they want.
“We would be gone ten months. That’s why I first retired in 1965, because I used to be homesick,” said a rebellious court.
It’s a debate that will probably never really be resolved, with Court lamenting the disrespect current players pay (or don’t, in this case) to past greats of the game.
Margaret Court with Andy Murray (left) and John Newcombe (right) during the Wimbledon celebrations in July. Court claims no one spoke to her at the event
Serena Williams serves in her last game ever – a loss to Aussie Ajla Tomljanovic at the US Open last week
The organizers of the US Open introduced Williams as the “greatest female tennis player of all time” for each of her matches, and Court said they refused to invite her to the tournament, as did the organizers of the French Open.
Although she was invited to the Wimbledon centenary celebrations in July, the Court claims that ‘no one has spoken to her’.
It seems tennis has decided Williams is the real ‘GOAT’ – but no one can take Court’s remarkable record away from her; those titles can’t be completely airbrushed out of history.