The debate of men competing against women in sports always becomes a point of controversy. Consequently, the debate gets even more fired up when it comes to a physically demanding sport such as tennis. Nevertheless, whenever the sport gets mentioned, the name of Serena Williams also comes forward.

Recently, former American swimmer Riley Gaines recalled the unofficial match which was played between the Williams sisters and German tennis player Karsten Braasch during a court proceeding. That might sound absurd to a few tennis zealots, however, it has actually happened.

During the late 1990s, Serena Williams started cementing her feet on the books of history as one of the greatest players to ever step on the court. In 1999, at the young age of 18, she was already a two-time Grand Slam winner. On the other hand, her elder sister, Venus Williams was also an astounding prospect.

However, at the peak of popularity, the two publicly stated that no man out of the top 200 rankings can defeat them. Thus, picking up the challenge, then World No. 203, Karsten Braasch decided to come forward.

Although the match was unofficial, it didn’t fail to grasp the media and public attention. The German didn’t face any problems defeating the sisters, as he took down Serena Williams (6-1) and Venus Williams (6-2).

What did Serena Williams say about the loss? As the match found its conclusion, Serena Williams stated that if she would have played similar shots in a WTA Tour, she would have won but Karsten Braasch was getting the better of her shots quite easily.

“I didn’t know it would be that difficult. I played shots that would have been winners on the women’s circuit and he got to them very easily,” said Serena Williams.

On the other hand, the former German tennis professional affirmed that the Williams sisters can’t defeat any men under the Top 500. He supported his statement by saying that he was playing in the match like a 600th-ranked player.

“They wouldn’t have had a chance against anyone inside the top 500 because today I played like someone ranked 600th to keep it fun,” Karsten Braasch quoted.

Tennis is among the most onerous and challenging sports around the world. Few matches end early, however, most of the fixtures apparently cross the 2 or 3-hour mark easily. Thus, biological men that identify themselves as women competing against biological women will always be a controversial point of view.