Former world number one
Chris Evert has expressed disagreement
about the comment of seven-time Grand Slam winner
John McEnroe.
The 64-year-old recently made a comment where he advised
youngsters who are interested in playing tennis to opt for college rather than
joining tennis academies.
"All studies show, both physically & mentally, it’s
healthier for kids to play other sports," said McEnroe. "For every
person you hear that succeeds, there’s a million that don’t. Not everyone’s
Carlos Alcaraz, he’s one in a billion. He’s just a freak. He’s an incredible
player, but most kids have no business doing that.”
Evert, who is often regarded as one of the greatest players
in the history of women’s singles tennis in the Open era having won as many as
18 Grand Slam titles in her illustrious career, while responding to McEnroe in a post on her official
account on the social media platform X — previously known as Twitter — disagreed
with those comments and suggested that tennis academies can help youngsters in getting
scholarships as well.
"I agree with John on many levels, but not every Tennis
Academy’s goal is to grind out professional tennis players, but to help kids
earn tennis scholarships to get into good colleges. The tennis/education
combination is the goal!"
