Bad boy Mac offers temper counseling to Murray
Bad boy Mac offers temper counseling to Murray
Legendary bad boy John McEnroe has issued some ironic advice to
often-grumpy Scot Andy Murray: don't let your temper ruin your tennis.
The pre-Wimbledon worlds of wisdom from the player who cut the template along with hated rival Jimmy Connors for tennis tantrums and outbursts three decades ago, believes he can offer No. 4 Murray a key to victory on the eve of the pressure-packed grass-court fortnight in SW13.
"Anger can be a positive force - but only when combined with control," the 53-year-old McEnroe said in a British radio interview. "Athletes should be straightforward. If you use that anger in a positive way, where you get yourself to try harder or dig deeper, it can be a good thing."
But the player who was once disqualified from the Australian Open more than 20 years ago after a rant at the chair umpire, added: "I would get mad at myself to increase my intensity level. If Andy can do that where it would not hurt his game, it would be a positive thing."
McEnroe added that too many of his own iconic boilovers during his prime may have been counter-productive. ""I call them the 'lob of diminishing returns.'"
Murray has a habit of getting down on himself during matches and has in the past bloodied his knuckles by striking them with the strings of his racquet. He is also not shy about cursing at his player box, but has toned it down with no-nonsense tough-guy Ivan Lendl now his coach.
The pre-Wimbledon worlds of wisdom from the player who cut the template along with hated rival Jimmy Connors for tennis tantrums and outbursts three decades ago, believes he can offer No. 4 Murray a key to victory on the eve of the pressure-packed grass-court fortnight in SW13.
"Anger can be a positive force - but only when combined with control," the 53-year-old McEnroe said in a British radio interview. "Athletes should be straightforward. If you use that anger in a positive way, where you get yourself to try harder or dig deeper, it can be a good thing."
But the player who was once disqualified from the Australian Open more than 20 years ago after a rant at the chair umpire, added: "I would get mad at myself to increase my intensity level. If Andy can do that where it would not hurt his game, it would be a positive thing."
McEnroe added that too many of his own iconic boilovers during his prime may have been counter-productive. ""I call them the 'lob of diminishing returns.'"
Murray has a habit of getting down on himself during matches and has in the past bloodied his knuckles by striking them with the strings of his racquet. He is also not shy about cursing at his player box, but has toned it down with no-nonsense tough-guy Ivan Lendl now his coach.
