John McEnroe calls for more "respect" for the Laver Cup
This is the fourth time that John McEnroe has put his heart and soul into action as the captain of Team World at the Laver Cup. The US legend was not only a little dissatisfied with the outcome at the weekend in Boston.
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Sep 28, 2021, 02:23 pm
When a player demands more "respect" in any of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States, they usually do so with dollar signs in their eyes. More respect means more money in the coming contract, to which some employers are happy to answer that they do not want to pay a high salary for past performance in the future as well. If John McEnroe now demands more respect for the Laver Cup, then it is about something else: namely attention.
Tennis doesn't have it easy in the USA, especially not on a weekend like the one in Boston, when Medvedev, Zverev and Co. not only play against John McEnroe's team but also against an NFL season in full swing, college Football and baseball in the final stages of the regular season must vie for the audience's attention. Not to mention the Ryder Cup, which finally saw the Americans as winners again a few days ago.
McEnroe - "A mistake by the ATP"
However, John McEnroe has not called upon golfers, football or baseball cracks, but rather the ATP. "That is my very personal opinion, but I believe that if you want to get on the same level as the Ryder Cup, there should be no other tournaments at the same time," said McEnroe in Boston. “The Laver Cup has to stand on its own.” It shouldn't mean that other players also have to be able to compete in a tournament.
In fact, the 250cc events in Nur-Sultan and Metz took place parallel to the Laver Cup week. “I don't agree with that,” McEnroe continued. "For me that's a mistake by the ATP." The latter accommodated the Laver Cup, in which Tennis Australia is in charge, in that the results of the matches are recorded in the official statistics. And that despite the fact that a match tiebreak is played instead of a third set. Points for the world rankings are not awarded.
However, after only twelve professionals plus two to four substitutes (in Boston that were Llyod Harris, Jack Sock, Cameron Norrie and Feliciano Lopez) enjoy a starting place at the Laver Cup, it would be difficult to convey that to the rest of the professional players they simply lose opportunities to earn an income. Because even in tennis, respect sometimes has something to do with money.