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Rennae Stubbs has called out John McEnroe and other former players who are gearing up to participate in the Pickleball Slam, saying that none of them liked pickleball and were playing only for money.
McEnroe will join Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick, and Michael Chang in headlining the first-ever Pickleball Slam at Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Florida, on Sunday (April 2). The two singles encounters will see McEnroe square off against Agassi and Roddick take on Chang.
As far as the doubles category is concerned, McEnroe and Chang will team up to face Agassi and Roddick. A cash prize of $1 million will be divided among the winners of all the matches.
Stubbs, who once remarked that she would rather watch paint dry than spend time on pickleball, took to social media to share one of McEnroe's recent interviews. In that interview, McEnroe told the Miami Herald that the growth of pickleball made him want to throw up.
“This came to us, like, ‘What, you’re going to throw some money at us? OK'," John McEnroe said. "I don’t look at pickleball like, ’Oh my God this is great'. If I hear one more time that pickleball is the fastest-growing sport, I’m gonna throw up. I don’t enjoy it. Tennis is my game."
"It’s hard to imagine something small like pickleball being great on TV. It’s like watching ping-pong on TV. Tough to see how that can really work. But I’ve had people say they started watching tennis because of pickleball. Hopefully, it’ll be a win-win for both," he added.
Serena Williams' ex-coach Rennae Stubbs quoted the interview to criticize the former players for promoting pickleball for money.
"Pickleball (NFT/Crypto bros) throwing sh*t tons of money at some of the greats of the tennis game to give it credibility. They all think it's a joke and embarrassing but they're happily taking their money," Stubbs tweeted.
"I think it sucks" - John McEnroe on pickleball last year
In a conversation with ABC News Radio last September, John McEnroe voiced some strong opinions about the fast-growing pickleball. He stated that while he did play pickleball with his friends, the game 'sucked'.
"I think it sucks," McEnroe said. "But you know, I play with my friends because you know, it is a level playing field, they think they can beat me, and I’m like, ‘Look, I still know something about angles and stuff'. But I've got to tell you to be careful because you’re way more susceptible to injury in that crappy pickleball game than you are in tennis. So stick to tennis."
McEnroe has been exchanging some light-hearted banter with Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick, and Michael Chang ahead of the Pickleball Slam.
