JOHN MCENROE: IF I WAS ON SOCIAL MEDIA AS MUCH AS NICK KYRGIOS, I WOULD BE IN THE SLAMMER
John McEnroe has said he would have ended up “in the slammer” if he was on social media, as he questioned why the likes of Nick Kyrgios are on it “all the time”.
The three-time Wimbledon champion, who appears with Kyrgios on BBC coverage next week, has also suggested the “epidemic” of phone addiction is plaguing tennis locker rooms.
McEnroe expressed relief that such technology was not available when he was in his own combustible playing pomp. Kyrgios’s social media history – including sharing comments by the misogynist Andrew Tate – has been raised in criticism of the BBC’s decision to hire the controversial Australian.
“I feel like if I was [on social media], I may have spent some time in the slammer,” McEnroe said, adding he was glad not to have had a smartphone during his playing career. “From everything I hear, it seems like the players in the locker room or when I see everyone – they’re all on their phones the entire time.
‘[Social media is] an epidemic for everyone, not just tennis players’
“It’s an epidemic for everyone, not just tennis players. Even though I felt like I was getting incredible attention, particularly at Wimbledon and negative attention often at times, it felt overwhelming, so I can only imagine how it feels now if every Tom, Dick and Harry can throw something at you as well.”
Kyrgios has described multiple times how he fell into depression amid the pressures of the game. “But I think he’s on social media all the time,” said McEnoe. “So there’s got to be a part of him that likes it, I would assume.”
The BBC’s recruitment of Kyrgios, the most controversial figure in tennis over the past decade, has dismayed campaigners against women’s abuse. In February last year, he admitted assaulting an ex-girlfriend, but a magistrate in Canberra, Australia, called the incident “a single act of stupidity or frustration” when sparing him a criminal record. But BBC executives have stood firm against the uproar last month, as he is now confirmed to join McEnroe as a Wimbledon pundit next week.
Kyrgios, 29, began his move into commentary during the ATP Finals in Turin at the end of last year, then worked for ESPN at January’s Australian Open. McEnroe said Kyrgios has already shown evidence he can be a good commentator. When asked whether he saw any parallels with his own career, the seven-time major winner modestly suggested “both of us would probably be in the category where maybe we could have done more” in their playing careers.
“If he is content in having gotten to the Wimbledon final two years ago, and he feels he has maxed out in what he can do, that is his decision,” added McEnroe.
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Caroline Nokes, the women and equalities committee chair, told The Telegraph the BBC should “hang its head in shame” for agreeing terms with Kyrgios. His previously boorish behaviour has included telling Stan Wawrinka that “Kokkinakis banged your girlfriend” and hurling a chair onto the court during a temper tantrum.
Yet he was also capable of sublime tennis, particularly at Wimbledon, where he reached the final in 2022 before losing to Novak Djokovic in four sets.
However, Kyrgios had often struggled with the weight of expectation on him. By 2019, his mental health had reached such a low point that he contemplated suicide. “I was drinking, abusing drugs, I hated the kind of person I was,” Kyrgios told the Netflix documentary series Break Point.
McEnroe expressed some sadness that Kyrgios looks unlikely to continue playing at the top, but added: “I think he can be good at it [commentary] because I think he is pretty good at it already.
“As an ex-player and as a fan of tennis who has seen a lot, a talent like Nick doesn’t come around every day... Nick was that type of guy; the talent you come across every 10 years. So I always felt I could have done more. I wish I had.
“But then again, if you had told me I would win three Wimbledons, I would have taken that in a heartbeat. Maybe Nick, maybe it is not as important to him to maximise what he could do. Everyone happily wants that but some people do more to accomplish that than others. Both of us would probably be in the category where maybe we could have done more.”
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2024-06-25T17:02:49Z dg43tfdfdgfd