McENROE’S THE ONE TO LISTEN TO

GOOD on John McEnroe for refusing to apologise for the comments he made about Emma Raducanu at Wimbledon. Nothing he contributed was wrong, or judgemental or demeaning, and all of it came from a position of wisdom and experience. ‘I meant exactly what I said,’ insisted McEnroe (right), referring to his commentary on Raducanu’s extreme distress under enormous pressure in her debut Grand Slam. ‘I tried to relate it in a small way to my experience when I first went to Wimbledon, also at 18.’

He added he thought his views were uncontroversial. Raducanu and her team certainly thought so, acting on his appraisal and addressing those infant problems magnificently. Yet still wilful misinterpretation continues. ‘Raducanu has very much silenced those critics,’ sniffed Martina Navratilova. ‘I said that at the time “STFU” because you don’t know what you’re talking about.’ Except McEnroe did. That is why he is paid the big bucks. For the analysis and insights the others are too scared or shallow to give.