Roger Federer's former coach has launched a scathing attack at John McEnroe after his priase of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
Ivan Ljubicic, who served as Roger Federer's coach from 2016 to 2022, and took issue with the American's comments following the French Open.
The Croatian dismissed the American tennis legend's controversial remarks as "nonsense" after McEnroe suggested during French Open coverage that current stars Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz could have defeated Rafael Nadal at his peak on clay.
The comments, made last month following the thrilling Roland-Garros final between Sinner and Alcaraz, have been widely perceived as disrespectful to Nadal's extraordinary legacy. The Spanish champion secured an unprecedented 14 French Open titles before retiring last year, establishing himself as the undisputed king of clay.
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|Ivan Ljubicic was Roger Federer's coach for six years
McEnroe made his contentious remarks whilst providing analysis for TNT Sports after witnessing Alcaraz's dramatic comeback victory over Sinner in Paris. The Spaniard had recovered from two sets down and saved three championship points to claim his second French Open crown.
Speaking about the match, McEnroe stated: "You took a look at them bringing their A-game right now I'm saying Sinner and Alcaraz against Nadal on clay you would make a serious argument with both guys that they would be favoured to beat Nadal, at his best."
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The seven-time Grand Slam champion's assessment came after Alcaraz's triumph added a fifth major title to his collection, whilst Sinner later avenged that defeat by winning Wimbledon earlier this month.
McEnroe expanded his controversial stance by comparing the current standard of tennis to basketball's greatest era. "It's like when you watch the NBA and you say nobody could be better than Michael Jordan. The tennis level right now is higher than I've ever seen," he claimed.
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PA | John McEnroe came under fire for his comments on Rafael NadalThe American also cast doubt on whether either Sinner or Alcaraz would match the Grand Slam tallies of tennis's legendary trio.
"Do I think they're going to reach 20, 24 titles either one of them? No. Because I think that plateau is so hard it's almost impossible; there's more depth in the game, bigger hitters, and more things happen," McEnroe said.
Ljubicic firmly rejected McEnroe's assessment whilst acknowledging the quality of the French Open final.
"It was a very, very, very good final. And the drama was perfect with the match points saved. But people always exaggerate," the Croatian stated.
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The former world number three specifically addressed McEnroe's claims about Nadal's chances against the current generation.
"John McEnroe said Nadal wouldn't have stood a chance against these boys. That's nonsense," Ljubicic declared.
Reuters | Ivan Ljubicic believes Rafael Nadal would be a fair match for Carlos Alcaraz or Janniik Sinner
He suggested that both Sinner and Alcaraz have yet to reach their full potential.
"We haven't seen the best of Alcaraz and Sinner yet. They still have a lot of room for improvement," Ljubicic added.