John McEnroe is doing it again. Not winning Grand Slams, as he is a veteran tennis legend, but stirring up a controversy! The Superbrat has never hesitated to share his views about any agenda, unfiltered. And this time too, while sharing his thoughts on the Grand Slam matches and their format, McEnroe favored tie breakers over traditional 5-set matches.

Stuart Fraser, The Times correspondent, recently took to X to share McEnroe’s thoughts about the 5-set matches in the gentlemen’s tennis at the Grand Slam. Fraser shared McEnroe’s thoughts while asking tennis fans for their response. “John McEnroe believes the best-of-five formats should remain at the grand slams but has suggested that the full deciding set be replaced by a 10-point tie-break”, he wrote, ending his tweet with an actionable for fans, “Thoughts?” This reignited a debate among fans, with many disagreeing with McEnroe’s proposal.

Sure, it is not the first time Superbrat has drawn the ire of the fans. However, no tennis fan is unaware of the scheduling blunders happening at the Majors- starting late and ending in the dawn. Consequently, playing on the court for over 4-5 hours (sometimes) and then coming back in a few hours to play a grueling match again. In all this, the fitness of the players takes a hit. However, fans disagree and want more if not the same.

Tennis Fans take a dig at McEnroe by suggesting 7-sets over the conventional 5-sets

Demand makes its own supply. With exhilarating excitement surrounding the tennis world as the Wimbledon Championship approaches, tennis fans want to witness it all. And the tournament organizers are well aware of the fact. Tennis fans want to see the thriller 5-set matches among the top players. Last-minute turnarounds, a dark horse emerging and slimming the chances of creating history for the favorites. And finds no point in shortening the length of the match by an hour. This fan suggested rather an alternative approach to tackle the problem.

He said, “What’s the point? It would shorten a match by like 40mins-1hr because of the 5th set TB, anyway. How about utilizing an extra 3-4 hours in the morning instead of starting at 1-2 pm? And not having 1hr gaps between matches and large gaps waiting for a money grab night session@8:30pm?”

There was another fan who was vehemently against reducing the match to tie-break. And would prefer 2 more sets instead of 5 to sort it out. They tweeted, “Well, considering what I pay for the U.S. Open tickets, I’d rather see 7 sets. Definitely don’t want to see 4 sets and 10 points unless he’s paying for my tickets, of course.” US Open tickets start from over $100 and range to as high as ~$2000, depending on the seat chosen. And wanting to watch every move closely, some fans save every dime to savor the moment. And 4 sets with a 10-point tie-break won’t satisfy them unless somebody else is footing the bill!

Meanwhile, other fans were utterly displeased by his opinion and considered him not in his senses while conveying this. They thought, “He’s been drinking again!” and not thinking much about it. Moreover, others saw it as McEnroe’s way of making it into the headlines and staying relevant. As they questioned why the sports need to change when things are going smoothly. The fan tweeted, “Why? Why? Why? There is no reason. There is nothing wrong with tennis. Stop finding a way to get into the headlines and make people talk about your ideas to change a sport that does not need changing.” 

Back in 2015, John McEnroe had proposed removing lets from tennis to speed up matches. Players often argue they don’t deserve a redo on a net cord, even though calls are made by a machine. Unlike pro tennis, college and recreational play keep the point going after a net cord. While it might favor servers initially, there’s a chance for returners to capitalize on a shaky second serve. That time too, people doubted if it would speed the game up that much.

However, some fans thought that it was not the right way to settle a match which was at 2-2. The two players are matching equally and don’t want to lose. And a 10-point tie break would make it an easy ending while robbing the other player of a chance at the title. Terming the tie-breaker a lottery, the tennis fan said, “A 10 points tie-break is still a kind of lotery. A match with 2-2 in sets deserves a better ending. Keep a full fifth set like it is now. And maybe better planning by the organisers to prevent matches ending at midnight or even later,” putting it on the organizers for better planning so that players don’t suffer due to tiring schedules.

At the end of the day, tennis fans and organizers want one thing- great matches and fit players! What do you think would be better for tennis- 5 setters or tie-break? Let’s know your take in this.