“I think there is a lot of women out there who are very exciting to watch. I think there are a lot of men out there who are exciting to watch. I think it definitely goes both ways.”
Williams rejected a notion that Moore’s comments could have been misconstrued.
“There’s only one way to interpret that,” she said. “ ‘Get on your knees,’ which is offensive enough, and ‘thank a man’? We, as women, have come a long way. We shouldn’t have to drop to our knees at any point.”
Williams expressed particular shock that Moore would make such comments after last year’s United States Open, when excitement over her Grand Slam bid caused tickets to the women’s final to sell out before the men’s final for the first time in tournament history.