John McEnroe turned heads this week with some comments comparing Novak Djokovic to Tiger Woods. A day later, Djokovic responded.
While providing commentary for BBC Wednesday, McEnroe talked about Nole’s troubles on the court and said the former No. 1 reminded him of Woods.
“The person that comes to mind immediately with Novak is not a tennis player, it’s actually a golfer: Tiger Woods,” McEnroe said. “… [Woods] had the issues with his wife, and then he seemed to go completely off the rails and has never been even close to being the same player.
“So we’re starting to say: ‘Wait a minute, is this possible with [Djokovic]?'”
After his straight sets victory at Wimbledon Thursday in the second round, Djokovic was asked about McEnroe’s words and responded. He said that McEnroe had the right to be a critic and said he doesn’t take the criticism personally.
“He’s very well-known for his kind of bold comments and not really caring too much about being politically correct, but saying whatever is on his mind. That’s all I can say. I really don’t take anything personal,” Djokovic said in response.
The comparison to Tiger is an allusion to rumors that Djokovic is having family problems, perhaps involving his relationship with his wife. Djokovic has struggled with his tennis over the past year, losing early at Wimbledon last year, the Australian Open, the Olympics, and his No. 1 ranking. He recently worked out a deal with Andre Agassi in hopes of turning around his slide.
