John McEnroe on Novak Djokovic: "Enrichment for our sport"
John McEnroe has spoken to GQ Magazine about the popularity of tennis' greats. And why Novak Djokovic and also Daniil Medvedev have been wronged in the past.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit: Jul 14, 2022, 10:39 am
Specifically, McEnroe finds two matches in which the preferences of the audience were very striking: the final of the Australian Open and Novak Djokovic's quarterfinals at the French Open 2022. Both games involving Rafael Nadal and both games in which the Mallorcan has the overwhelming majority knew about the ranks behind him - and his opponents were often not treated fairly.
"He (Medvedev) didn't deserve this (to be booed) any more than Djokovic deserved it at the French (Open). When they were playing, they booed him when he came out," John McEnroe told GQ -Magazine. Especially in the case of the Russian, the American locates significant after-effects of this experience, as the 63-year-old explained.
Djokovic 'such a professional player'
"In my opinion, Medvedev has not yet recovered emotionally from the defeat (in the final of the Australian Open). Not only because he lost, but because of the audience," said McEnroe. Medvedev had already led 2-0 sets against Nadal in the final Down Under, but ultimately had to admit defeat in five sets.
In the case of Djokovic, too, the American appeals for more fairness: "You may not like Djokovic as much as Nadal or Federer, but he is an asset to our sport, for heaven's sake." Words that Alex Corretja fully agrees with in his assessment of the Wimbledon final: "Controlling emotions, how good you have to be as a tennis player, as a person, as a professional, the consistency. It's almost impossible to understand, but I'm happy very much for Novak," said the Spaniard.
With that, the Serb has also once again fueled the race for the most Grand Slam titles with long-term rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal: "He's passed Roger and he's chasing Rafa again, so the race isn't over yet. I think it is very interesting for the sport in general. It's good that Novak keeps winning because he's such a professional player."