John McEnroe Doubles Down On His Controversial Emma Raducanu Comments

Despite recently winning the US Open at just 18 years of age, it appears Emma Raducanu still hasn't managed to win everyone over.

A few months back, tennis legend John McEnroe had plenty to say about the British teenager after she was forced to retire from Wimbledon with breathing issues.

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McEnroe suggested that the lights were a tad too bright for young Raducanu and that she perhaps buckled under the pressure rather than an injury.

The American's controversial comments landed him in hot water with tennis fans and he subsequently copped some heavy backlash.

And even after Raducanu's historic US Open victory last weekend, McEnroe has now decided to double down on his claims.

"I meant exactly what I said," McEnroe told CNN in an interview.

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"I tried to relate it in a small way to my experience when I first went to Wimbledon also at 18.

"There's a lot of great upsides, but there's also pressure you put on yourself and expectations that others put on you. I mean that was to me as vanilla as it comes... I was very supportive of her, I thought, at the time.

"You know the papers over in England. Sometimes they, like, make a big deal out of, to me, nothing."

McEnroe found himself in the firing line during his Wimbledon commentary for somewhat insinuating that Raducanu wasn't injured at all.

"It's a shame. I feel bad for Emma. It appears like it just got too much, which is understandable," McEnroe told the BBC back in July.

"It makes you look at the guys and girls who have been around for so long and wonder how they handle it. Hopefully she will learn from this experience.

"Maybe it's not a shame this has happened right now when she is 18. I played this tournament at 18 and in a way I was happy I lost.

"I was able to understand what it would take to make it. Allow her to take some deep breaths and maybe get some wildcards."

Fast forward a few months and Raducanu has singlehandedly captured the imaginations of the entire tennis world.

Even as a qualifier, she didn't drop a single set during her fairytale path to her first professional title in just her second Grand Slam appearance.

On top of that, the US Open women's final peaked at 3.4 million television viewers, while the men's final hit 2.7 million.

Topics: Emma Raducanu, Tennis, Tennis news, Wimbledon, US Open, Australia

Max Sherry

Max Sherry is a journalist for SPORTbible Australia. After migrating Down Under from London as a teenager, he instantly fell in love with Aussie sport and its culture. From NRL to AFL, cricket to rugby — you name it, Max watches it (with a beer in hand, of course). During his time at Fox Sports, he worked in the football department covering the Premier League, A-League, Socceroos and Matildas. Born a stone's throw away from West Ham's training ground, Max is obviously a die-hard Liverpool fan.

@maxysherry