Melbourne: World number one Serena Williams and British tennis star Andy Murray have issued a stinging rebuke against top-ranked Novak Djokovic after he made controversial remarks on women’s prize money.
Pointing out at the equal pay in tennis, Djokovic said that men should get more prize money than women because they have more spectators than that of the latter.
The Serbian’s comments came after Indian Wells CEO Raymond Moore’s `sexist` remarks that cost the latter his job.
Moore earlier said the women players are riding on the coat-tails of the men. He didn’t stop there and went on to say that a lady tennis player should go down on her knees and thank God for the birth of men players like Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal because they have carried the sport.
Describing Djokovic’s remarks as `disappointing`, Williams insisted that she would never differentiate between her son and daughter over money, news.com.au reported.
Williams, who admitted that Djokovic was entitled to his opinions, wondered how the male tennis star would explain his beliefs to his future daughter.
The 26-year-old’s statement also sparked outburst among the men’s tennis, with second-seed Andy Murray stressing on need of providing equal pay to both the sex.
Murray described the comments as pretty strange, adding that he felt extremely disappointing to hear something like that.
Djokovic later went on to clinch BNP Paribas Open title after claiming an emphatic 6-2, 6-0 triumph over his Canadian compatriot Milos Raonic in a one-sided summit showdown that lasted for one hour and 17 minutes.(ANI)