Wimbledon 2021: John McEnroe slammed for comments he made about British star Emma Raducanu
Andy Murray, his mum and other tennis stars have jumped to the defence of British teen Emma Raducanu after the John McEnroe saga escalated.
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Sports stars have hurried to the defence of British teen sensation Emma Raducanu after John McEnroe suggested she had become overwhelmed by the enormity of playing a home grand slam.
McEnroe was slammed for his ‘chauvinistic’ comments about Raducanu after she retired from her round of 16 match against Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic on Monday (local time).
Raducanu was in tears as she decided to pull the pin on her impressive run at the SW19 slam. She looked to have been struggling for breath as she called for the trainer.
It was later confirmed Raducanu had withdrawn with breathing problems.
Following her retirement, McEnroe suggested she had simply been overwhelmed by the occasion and drew parralels between her and Naomi Osaka who withdrew from the French Open earlier this year because of depression and anxiety.
“I feel bad for Emma, obviously,” said McEnroe. “It appears it just got a little bit too much, as is understandable, particularly with what we’ve been talking about this over the last six weeks with Osaka not even here.
“It makes you look at the guys and girls who have been around for so long and wonder how they handle it. Hopefully she will learn from this experience.
John McEnroe makes bizarre chauvinistic remarks on BBC about Emma Raducanu (who was obviously sick - and Not emotional, as he was implying) and his claim that Tomljanovic would be happy with what happened was out of order.
— Jacquelin Magnay (@jacquelinmagnay) July 5, 2021
“Maybe it’s not a shame this has happened right now when she is 18. I played this tournament at 18 and in a way I was happy I lost.
“I was able to understand what it would take to make it. Allow her to take some deep breaths and maybe get some wildcards.”
Amid savage backlash, McEnroe garnered support from Piers Morgan.
“McEnroe told the truth. Ms Raducanu’s a talented player but couldn’t handle the pressure & quit when she was losing badly,” Morgan tweeted. “Not ‘brave’, just a shame.
“If I were her, I’d tell my fans to stop abusing McEnroe, & seek his advice on how to toughen up & become a champion like he was.
“Mental strength and resilience are not dirty words. They’re good things that need to be taught, nurtured, encouraged & celebrated from school onwards. This would be immeasurably easier if so many high profile people stopped playing the victim.”
IN SUPPORT OF EMMA
Morgan’s words prompted more furious backlash from fans and athletes.
Andy Murray called Morgan out saying his take on it was “very harsh” and that “the timing of it was a bit off considering nobody had any clue what her issue was injury/illness/breathings issues etc at the time of his comments”.
Murray’s mum Judy weighed in with: “Middle-aged men should generally avoid commenting on the physical or mental wellbeing of teenage girls. They will NEVER experience or fully understand that world,” she tweeted.
England football sensation Marcus Rashford even reached out saying the same had happened to him.
“It happened to me playing for the national team in U16s against Wales. I remember it to this day,” he wrote. “No explanation for it and it never happened again.
“You should be very proud of yourself. The country is proud of you. Glad to read you’re feeling better. Onwards and upwards.”
REACHING OUT
The teenager, who was playing in the main draw of a grand slam for the first time after securing a late wildcard entry, released a statement 24 hours after withdrawing.
“I want to let everyone know that I am feeling much better,” Raducanu said.
“First up, I want to congratulate Ajla on an incredible performance and I’m sorry our match ended the way it did. I was playing the best tennis of my life in front of an amazing crowd this week and I think the whole experience caught up with me.
“At the end of the first set, after some super intense rallies, I started to breathe heavily and felt dizzy. The medical team advised me not to continue and although it felt like the hardest thing in the world not to be able to finish my Wimbledon on the court, I was not well enough to carry on.
“I want to thank the people who have cheered me on every single match, I wanted to win so badly for you! I also want to thank the All England Club, my team, the LTA, my parents and friends. Last night will go a long way to helping me learn what it takes to perform at the top.
“I will cherish everything we have achieved together this week and come back stronger! Can’t wait to see what’s next on my journey.”
WHAT THE AUSSIES THINK
Tomjlanovic accused McEnroe of being “too harsh” in his assessment when asked about it in her press conference.
“I wasn’t 100 per cent sure what was wrong with Emma. I did hear the reasoning. I’ll start with saying that I can’t imagine being in her shoes at 18, playing a fourth round in your home country. It’s something I can’t even imagine,” Tomljanovic said.
“For him to say that, it’s definitely harsh. I have experienced something similar but not to that extent. I know that it’s a real thing. I’ve spoken to athletes that have gone through that. It’s not easy.
I didn’t realise John McEnroe was medically qualified or that he has X-ray vision! I hope Emma Raducanu is ok and wish her a speedy recovery. Did her country proud 🇬🇧
— Dr Alex (@DrAlexGeorge) July 5, 2021
“When I heard the reasoning, I almost felt worse about it because I know how bad that can feel. But then again, it didn’t happen to me.
“I can’t imagine how she must be feeling having to pull out. Being down 6-4 3-0, you can come back from that quickly, especially on grass.
“It’s really sad that she had to do that. I do feel sorry.”
Tennis Tweet on #Wimbledon - but how can John McEnroe come out with those comments not knowing anything about her retirement from the match?!
— Rob Vickerman (@robvickerman) July 5, 2021
BRING ON BARTY
Victory for Tomljanovic sets her up with a quarter-final showdown with compatriot Ash Barty.
In a high calibre display on the number one court, Barty was pushed to her best form of the year against in-form Czech Barbora Krejcikova, who came into the match with a run of 15 victories, including the French Open.
The Queenslander responded to the pressure, upped her game, and controlled her serve to win 7-5, 6-3.
“I’m feeling great. I’m feeling ready,” Barty said. “Obviously getting more and more matches is really nice to be able to feel the court under my feet.”
After Raducanu was forced to retire in the second set, Tomljanovic said “I really am kind of shocked’’.
John McEnroe makes bizarre chauvinistic remarks on BBC about Emma Raducanu (who was obviously sick - and Not emotional, as he was implying) and his claim that Tomljanovic would be happy with what happened was out of order.
— Jacquelin Magnay (@jacquelinmagnay) July 5, 2021
“Obviously firstly because Emma must be really really hurt, I mean to play as a Brit at home, its unbelievable, so I wished we could have finished it,’’she said.
The retirement means that Australia is assured of a semi-finalist at this year’s Wimbledon tournament with the winner playing either Karolina Muchova, from Czech Republic or the former Wimbledon champion Angelique Kerber of Germany.
Tomljanovic said: “To play Ash (Barty) in the quarters, two Aussies, you know it’s great. So I think everyone back home is really happy. I am thrilled to be playing Ash and I think, I’m hoping that it will. Be a great match.’’
On Tomljanovic, whom Barty has played alongside and warmed up with on repeated occasions, she said: “Obviously it’s incredible for Aussie tennis. I was pumped to see Ajla through to the second week here for her first time at Wimbledon, I think.
“She’s been knocking on the door for a long time. She’s a great girl, has been playing some great tennis. I was rapt for her to be able to get through.”
All of the world’s top 10 women, bar Barty and the No. 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, have been eliminated or injured from Wimbledon including No. 7 seed Iva Swiatek from Poland who lost her fourth round match against Ons Jabeur of Tunisia on Monday.
Barty, 25, went down an early service game in Monday’s match, but broke back when Krejcikova struggled with her serve and approaches to the net.
Barty sensed an opening, finding the line on her devastating forehand.
Barty said after the match her comeback after being down in the first set was important.
“To take that 2-4 game in the first set was a big one,” she said.
“I felt like a couple of those breakpoints down, I think there were one or two, I played the point a bit more aggressively and was able to be a bit more assertive. That was kind of a little bit of a change.
“Probably for the first 15 or 20 minutes, I felt like I was really struggling to pick up her ball off her racquet. I wasn’t able to make enough, give myself a chance to get into games, plain and simple.
“Once I was able to do that, getting a break back instantly at 4-3 to level things out was a good game. Again, I made more balls and gave myself a chance.
“It was just about giving myself time to settle into the match in a sense of feeling super free and super comfortable, just working my way into games.”
In the second set Barty’s steely determination saw her break Krejcikova twice, although Krejcikova bounced back with her own break. In the end Barty served out to end Krejcikova’s phenomenal run – attributed she said to memories of her late coach the 1998 Wimbledon champion Jana Novotna, who died of cancer at age 49 in 2017.
The match featured a tough battle of tactics. Barty’s difficult to read slices and spins were pitted against Krejcikova’s attacking of Barty’s backhand.
At one stage there were some spots of rain, threatening a delay for the covers to be put on, but Barty and Krejcikova agreed to continue. This was a match that has set Barty up for much greater things.
Tomljanovic, 28 showed her decade long experience on the pro circuit, withstanding the roaring crowd backing Raducanu, the shock surprise card at this year’s Championship, in a tough battle. At one point in the first set Tomljanovic struggled to hold serve – the game taking eight minutes – but she held her nerve during long rallies and took the set 6-4.
But Raducanu began to labour and appeared to be suffering a stomach complaint during the second set and she then requested medical assistance with the score at 3-0.
But unlike the situation with Raducanu’s last opponent, Jelena Ostapenko, which resulted in the players accusing each other of disrespect, Raducanu continued playing until the doctor arrived at the change over.
She was then taken off for medical treatment and couldn’t return to play.
Tomljanovic said there were nerves from both sides at the beginning, but later in the set “I felt like I found my groove”.
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