"Would you pay Frank Sinatra the same that you pay the carpenters of Caesars Palace?" - When Arthur Ashe spoke against equal prize money for men and women

Tennis icon Arthur Ashe said in an interview back in 1980 that women tennis players did not deserve the same amount of prize money as men.

The American spoke about it during his appearance on the Dick Cavett Show when asked about Billie Jean King's fight for equal pay. He claimed that the amount of prize money a player commands in tennis is equivalent to their box office appeal.

The 1975 Wimbledon champion also likened the situation to the difference between paying a carpenter and Frank Sinatra at Caesar's Palace.

"We've come to realize that like other sports, our appeal is about 70% entertainment and 30% pure sport and as such, the amount of money we make or that we can command in prize money is directly related to our box office appeal. Now, what I said was that women don't deserve the same amount of prize money as men, they don't. We are not out there making car doors for Ford motor company," Arthur Ashe said.

"Now, what example I like to use is let's suppose Caesar's Palace were supposed to have the carpenters one week and Frank Sinatra the next week. Now, would you pay Frank Sinatra the same that you pay the carpenters? Obviously not, you pay Frank quite a bit more than you pay the carpenters for the exact same number of hours," he added.

Ashe also stated that while women might command more money sometime later, at that moment, in 1980, the caliber and quality of their matches were not equal to that of men.

"So, all I was saying is that the caliber and the quality of the matches put on by a draw of 128 women in no way right now, in the fall of 1980, equal the appeal of a draw of the best 128 men. One day, the women might command more but right now, it's not the same," Arthur Ashe expressed.

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"Chrissie Evert seldom loses more than two games a set before she gets to the quarterfinals, one of the top 16 in the men will lose in the first or second round" - Arthur Ashe

Chris Evert in action at the 1982 Wimbledon Championships in London.

Justifying his point further, Arthur Ashe said that while the likes of Chris Evert and Tracy Austin had the same amount of power as Bjorn Borg or John McEnroe, the women won their matches easily until the quarterfinals. In contrast, one of the top 16 men's players would lose in the opening rounds.

"At the top, there's no question that Chrissie (Evert) or Tracy Austin, they are just as powerful as a Borg or a McEnroe. But unfortunately, you start in the first round of 64 matches and the women usually win those matches very easily. I mean, Chrissie Evert seldom loses more than two games a set before she gets to the quarterfinals whereas assuredly one of the top 16 in the men will lose in the first or second round," Arthur Ashe said.