WATCH: “I did see you beat Serena Williams,” John McEnroe gives pep talk to Maria Sharapova ahead of her Pickleball debut against Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf

Sharapova will pair up with John McEnroe against Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi.

WATCH: “I did see you beat Serena Williams,” John McEnroe gives pep talk to Maria Sharapova ahead of her Pickleball debut against Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf

John McEnroe and Maria Sharapova (Image via : IG/@thepickleballslam)

Pickleball, one of the fastest-growing sports in the world, has taken the tennis world by storm. Former World No.1 women’s tennis player Maria Sharapova recently announced that she is preparing for her Pickleball debut in Miami on February 4th, 2024. The 5-time Grand Slam singles champion will pair up with John McEnroe against one of the most famous and successful tennis couples, Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi.

Sharapova took to social media sharing a video confirming her return to the court for the second edition of the Pickleball Slam, which will be played at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel in South Florida. The first Pickleball Slam took place in April earlier this year and featured Agassi, McEnroe, Michael Chang, and Andy Roddick.

YouTube video

FS Video

In a video released by the official Instagram page of the Pickleball Slam tournament, McEnroe was seen giving a bit of pep talk to his teammate, 3 months before the showdown match. The former American pro started off by saying that, in his opinion, they were going to be a great team at the tournament. On being asked by Sharapova what made him think that, the 7-time Grand Slam champion added that the Russian’s height would complement his skills on the court.

Here’s the video of the interaction between the two tennis legends:

McEnroe went on to explain the rules to Sharapova as they deliberated on their strategies. The American further cited Sharapova’s career tennis record to hype her up for the match. 

I think we could potentially arrange to have it on clay if you want. But I think you're pretty good on the hard court. To me, hard court was your best surface, although I did see you beat Serena on the grass. So I like our chances.

There is a $ 1 million purse to be awarded to the champions, but they are expected to make a donation to charity with the winnings.

Maria Sharapova criticizes tennis authorities over the pay disparity between the tournaments

While the US Open took the initiative towards pay equity 50 years back by giving the same prize money to winners of the men’s and women’ tournaments, other events on the tour are yet to catch up. The issue has been brought to the limelight again as people pointed out the pay disparity at the Asian hard court swing. Maria Sharapova didn’t hesitate to address the significant disparities in pay during the Bloomberg Screentime conference with their chief correspondent Jason Kelly.

maria sharapova
Maria Sharapova (Image via Bloomberg)

The former Russian pro criticized the ATP and WTA for the wage gap in professional tennis. The five-time Grand Slam singles champion highlighted the need for a thorough change in the sport’s financial system and pay structure. 

Just this week, there’s a men’s tournament still happening in Shanghai with the Winner’s prize check of $1.2 million. In the same week, there’s a women’s tournament in China with the Winner’s check at $120,000.

The Australian Open is the only Major consistently offering equal pay since 2001, and the French Open and Wimbledon didn’t follow suit until 2007. Sixteen years after all four Grand Slam events first guaranteed equal prize money, the pay gap in tennis exists basically just as it did in 2007.

In case you missed it: