He called her the greatest female tennis player in his book.  Garcia-Navaro pressed him - saying why qualify it - isn't she the best tennis player ever?

He responded off the cuff.  Would she be ranked 700?  Probably not, would she be in the top 20?  Probably not.  On average, there are differences in the sexes - why is it chauvinistic to point that out?  (disclaimer - McEnroe has always been a brash, PITA - this seems in keeping with his personality.)

The Williams sisters played a 205 ranked man in 1998 and both were beaten handily.