John McEnroe Is Concerned For Women’s Delicate Bodies, Minds

The U.S. Open begins Monday, and that means we’ll have John McEnroe back in our lives on a regular basis. This is a good thing – McEnroe’s combination of passion, insight, and good humor makes him one of the best announcers in sports.

But when you like to talk as much as McEnroe does, sometimes you’ll say things that will probably rub some people the wrong way. We have a feeling that McEnroe had such a moment today, when he expressed fears that the current physical and mental demands of women’s tennis are too much for the players.

Here’s the crux of McEnroe’s argument, delivered via conference call:

“I think that it’s asking too much of the women. They shouldn’t be playing as many events as the men…The women have it better in tennis than in any other sport, thanks to Billie Jean King [who has pushed for equal prize money for women]. But you shouldn’t push them to play more than they’re capable of.”

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“They should be required to be in less events, there should be less events for the women. It seems it takes an actual meltdown on the court or women quitting the game altogether before they realize there’s a need to change the schedule.”

Fellow announcer (and, notably, McEnroe’s former mixed doubles partner on the court) Mary Carillo did not agree with his assessment.

“Monica Seles was as mentally tough as anyone I’ve ever seen — man or woman. Steffi Graf. Chrissy [Evert] and Martina [Navratilova]…They stayed so fit mentally and physically for so long because they wanted it for so long. To say we’re asking too much of women, I don’t see it.”

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“I hate the idea that we have to judge women on a curve and say, ‘It’s too much for them.’ I’ve seen too many great women champions for too long.”

CBS couldn’t distance themselves from McEnroe’s remarks quickly enough, with a spokesman saying, “John’s an analyst and an individual, and it was his opinion.” Women’s Tennis Association tour commissioner Stacey Allaster also disagreed with McEnroe, saying that “he is a well-respected leader in our sport, but I hope when someone makes those comments he also looking at the data.”

As for us, we don’t believe McEnroe’s a chauvinist – he calls women’s matches with passion just like men’s, and seems to genuinely enjoy and appreciate the women’s game.

But this, combined with that time he said he could beat the Williams sisters – well, there’s a bit of a pattern here. And while we’re looking forward to his commentary over the next two weeks, this remark will be in back of our heads…and we doubt we’ll be the only ones.

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