"Margaret Court shouldn't be on the board"- As Novak Djokovic chases record 25th Major at Wimbledon, Davenport questions Aussie's inclusion 

Lindsay Davenport on comparing Novak Djokovic and Margaret Court (Images: GETTY)
Lindsay Davenport on comparing Novak Djokovic and Margaret Court (Images: GETTY)

Lindsay Davenport recently said there was no basis for comparison between Margaret Court and Novak Djokovic — both of whom are from different eras. The American also asserted that the Aussie had it easy during her heyday against a depleted field at the Australian Open, where she won 11 of her 24 Major titles.

Tennis Channel invited former player-turned-pundits Lindsay Davenport and Jim Courier to discuss the Open Era record for most Major titles on the eve of the men's singles final at Wimbledon. Djokovic, who is tied with Court at 24 Major titles, will be eager to move past her on Sunday when he faces Carlos Alcaraz in a rematch of their championship match in 2023.

During the interaction, Davenport opined that Margaret Court had become a regular fixture in the Majors debate only recently. The 46-year-old added that the sizes of the women's singles draw at the Australian Open — a tournament that Court won in 1960-66, 1969-71, 1973 — was relatively smaller than the other three Majors at the time.

She then went as far as to suggest that comparing the Aussie to the modern-day greats was like mixing "apples and oranges".

"It was interesting when Steffi Graf was kind of reaching that number. She was only getting compared to Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert. There wasn't even the conversation of Margaret Court," Lindsay Davenport said. Somewhere along the line, Margaret Court got inserted. She played all these [Majors] in Australia at a time when some were 32-draws.
"It's apples to oranges when you start to compare the eras. But this is still there when we show these graphics. All these players are very aware of that. I don't think she should be on the board. That's just my personal opinion," she added.

"Have to break this discussion up to kind of 1988 and beyond" - Jim Courier on comparing Margaret Court to the likes of Novak Djokovic

Novak Djokovic poses with the 2023 Australian Open title
Novak Djokovic poses with the 2023 Australian Open title

Margaret Court won 24 Major titles between 1960 and 1973; however, tennis transitioned into a professional sport in only 1968. Moreover, the Australian Open was held at a much lesser scale prior to 1988.

In that context, former World No. 1 Jim Courier echoed Lindsay Davenport's sentiment about the difficulties of illustrating a comparison between the Aussie and Novak Djokovic.

"That's absolutely true, and that's why, in my view, you have to break this discussion up to kind of 1988 and beyond. Because that's when all the players started going to the Australian Open," Jim Courier said. "That's when it moved away from grass onto the hardcourts... Melbourne Park and a retractable roof appeared. So, that's when that kind of leveled up, if you will, with the other Slams. And everyone started to chase those year in and year out."

Novak Djokovic, on his part, holds the record for most men's singles titles at the Melbourne Slam with 10 triumphs to his name. The Serb is also going for his eighth title at Wimbledon on Sunday, which will allow him to equal Roger Federer's record tally at the All England Club.

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Edited by Neelabhra Roy
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