The golden girl of Wimbledon has said her piece, "You'll never be as popular as me." This was Maria Sharapova's response to the hurtful statement of French tennis player Gilles Simon on equal cash prizes for the female and male tennis players.

Simon raised a lot of eyebrows at the All England Club when he once again opened up the issue of equal awards for tennis players, regardless of the gender. He added that this is because the male players' games are more fun to watch and that they play five sets - reasons enough to make them have the bigger pay.

The highest paid female athlete in the globe left her comment with a good sting. "We women have fought so long to get equal prize money. It was a big challenge and nobody really supported us. It's been a few years since we've gotten that...," Sharapova said.

The sportswoman was supported by another number one female tennis player, Serena Williams. The four-time champion at the Wimbledon said that the Frenchman will definitely lose on this battle he started.

Williams even emphasized that more people will choose to watch Sharapova since 'she's way hotter than he is."

Simon who has earned about 10 tour titles in his resume has never reached beyond the Grand Slam's quarter finals. The 27-year-old player is now facing a terrible deal of questioning from the press with regards to his most recent 'gender equality' statement.

According to Simon, his view was shared also by most of the male tennis players included on the tour. "The 128 players here think like me, that's for sure. Just ask them," Simon said.

He added that some of the male tennis players may just be hesitant to say this truth that he also believes in so as to not lose their contracts. But he emphasized that he is pretty sure everyone will openly agree with him when within the walls of the locker rooms.

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