John McEnroe calls Carlos Alcaraz a ‘freak and one in a billion’ while taking a subtle dig at legendary coach Nick Bollettieri

John McEnroe insists on not restricting kids from playing other sports, says college is an important experience for them as well.

John McEnroe calls Carlos Alcaraz a ‘freak and one in a billion’ while taking a subtle dig at legendary coach Nick Bollettieri

John McEnroe, Carlos Alcaraz and Nick Bollettieri ( Credits: Tennis 365, Your Observer)

The 7-time Grand Slam champion, John McEnroe recently in a podcast, discussed the importance of playing different sports rather than just focusing on one sport. He also pointed out that college is an important part of any person’s life as he is partnering with Maria Sharapova for his Pickleball debut against Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf.

In a podcast with SmartLess, the former American tennis player called Carlos Alcaraz a freak, who is in a billion kind of a person. Talking about how not everyone can become as successful as World No.2, John McEnroe stated:

For every person you hear that succeeds, there’s a million that don’t. Not everyone’s Carlos Alcaraz, he’s one in a billion. He’s just a freak. He’s an incredible player, but most kids have no business doing that.

In the podcast, John McEnroe stressed the importance of giving kids exposure to all kinds of sports and not just pushing them to play just one sport from a young age. He also talked about his own experience growing up in Queens and not joining a club like that of Nick Bollettieri, which gave him a deeper understanding of other sports as well, before choosing to pursue tennis professionally.

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McEnroe also added that playing different sports is proven to be beneficial to kids’ mental and physical health. Talking about how he would have quit the game if he joined a tennis camp like Nick’s, John McEnroe added:

" I grew up in Queens. The best thing that ever happened to me was not going to a Nick Bollettieri-style camp. I would’ve quit the game at 16 or 17. I love to play other sports."

John McEnroe takes a sly dig at Nick Bollettieri’s coaching, stresses on college experience for kids

In the podcast with SmartLess, John McEnroe insisted on giving a kid the complete experience, regarding their understanding of different sports. He also criticized former coach, Nick Bollettieri’s style of coaching in a very subtle manner. Nick Bollettieri was a former American coach.

John McEnroe
John McEnroe ( Credits: News 18)

He was the coach for many notable tennis players like Andre Agassi, Jim Courier, Monica Seles, and Mary Pierce. He also worked with other tennis players during his career as a coach, like Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, and many others.

Nick Bollettieri was one of the first people in the tennis world to introduce the concept of tennis boarding schools where young talents would be nurtured from a very small age. However, John McEnroe openly expressed his dissatisfaction with such a model of tennis coaching.

Talking about the importance of academics and going to college, the former tennis legend mentioned said:

I think college is an experience that not only do you get to play as a team potentially if you’re in a sport, but you get to grow up a little bit & also have some fun before you work your way into a profession, & you’ll be more prepared to handle it.

Team World coach in the Laver Cup, John McEnroe also talked about how an understanding of other sports will give tennis players a better advantage. He also added how tennis players nowadays are peaking later than ever in their careers. He encouraged kids to spend some time having a diverse understanding of all sorts of teams and single sports before getting them dedicated to a single sport.

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