"Need to do a lot better": John McEnroe calls for players to boycott Grand Slam tournaments with reform goal in mind

As John McEnroe's time at the Laver Cup came to a close, he also used the week to get his views off his chest on the current state of tennis. In particular in this case, the urgent need for reform which he believes needs a boycott to achieve.

McEnroe was asked about the business of tennis on CNBC alongside Tony Godsick, the longtime agent of Roger Federer and CEO of Team8. He said that his dream one day is that somebody not from a privileged background will win a major and that the game is not accessible enough.

With tennis being a game flowing with riches especially at the top of the game, it is easy at the top and less so at the bottom. McEnroe also called for a boycott of sorts to take place at a Grand Slam to show the powers that be that changed is needed and required. But he doesn't see any of the top names doing that referencing Federer albeit long retired and Carlos Alcaraz.

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"The game is not accessible or affordable enough yet. My long goal over the last 40 years is to get the game to more people who can’t normally afford it. My dream would be someone from Harlem, The Bronx, Queens, to come and win a US Open," he said on CNBC's Squawk Box with Tony Godsick also as a guest.

"The players have an association but they don’t have a union. We need to do a lot better. Because the sport is worldwide, players are spread out all over the world and it’s tough to agree on a lot of things

"In order to get what we want, and I’m speaking for myself, I’m not speaking for Roger Federer or Carlos Alcaraz, you probably need to boycott a major or two. That’s the only way to show these guys we mean business but I don’t know if the players of today would be willing to do that

"Sometimes it takes a lot longer to realize and appreciate what you’ve been given - that you want to give back ‘cause it’s given me a lot. You gotta get that coolness back, not to mention affordability, accessability, which tennis isn't...This is an uphill battle. We need to do a lot more."

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