Former world number one John McEnroe believes that Russia’s tennis star Andrey Rublev has “crossed a line for himself” following his defeat in the third round of the French Open.
The 26-year-old Andrey Rublev lost in straight sets to Italy’s Matteo Arnaldi in the round of 32 clash at Roland Garros on Friday, with a score of 7-6, 6-2, 6-4. During the match, the current world number six showed visible frustration with his performance.
McEnroe, who is also famous for showing emotions on the court during his time, was quoted in a report recently stating that while he can understand Rublev’s reaction, he still believes that he did cross a line for “himself.””Whether or not he crossed a line is irrelevant at this point,” McEnroe said. “I don’t think he crossed a line; he crossed a line for himself.”
“Take it from someone who knows about going crazy, if you’re going to go crazy, you’ve got to know when to pull back so you can keep your focus and concentration, and play well. If it’s helping you, which it often did with me, you keep doing it until they say ‘One more and you’re out’. If it’s not helping, you’ve got to go to a plan B,” McEnroe advised.
“This has been a rough couple of months for Andrey. He got defaulted in the Middle East, and that turned out not to be the right call. Then he went through a four-match losing streak; doesn’t beat anybody. Then he wins Madrid of all things having not won, so everyone was like, ‘Woah, maybe he can win this.’ I don’t think his confidence was that high,” McEnroe reflected.