‘They Gave Me $500 for Seven Weeks’ – ‘Superbrat’ John McEnroe Reveals Adverse Times That Forced Him To Remain Strong

John McEnroe, like any player, had huge dreams when he first started his professional journey on the tour. To achieve his goals, he has endured the strenuous life of a tennis player and made a lot of sacrifices for his sport. McEnroe recently spoke about the lack of support during the early stages of his tennis career and how it helped him become more resilient.

His entire career is chronicled in the movie McEnroe, which came out this July. The American tennis legend has seven Grand Slam titles and at one point had the top spot in the ATP rankings in both singles and doubles.

John McEnroe opens up about his struggles as a junior player

In a recent interview with Tennis365, the seven-time Grand Slam champion talked about his first trip to Europe and how fortunate today’s players are when it comes to the support they recieve from various associations and academies.

‘Superbrat’ recalled the time he went to Paris with no other support from the tennis association. He said, “I was the number one junior in the world and they gave me $500 for seven weeks. They didn’t set up any hotel rooms, I didn’t have a coach and I was sent by myself, but I ended up reaching the semis of Wimbledon that summer and it changed by life.”

READ MORE – “It Wasn’t Good Enough to Release It “- John McEnroe Details Why His Music Album Never Hit the Stores.

The former world number one missed his high school graduation and strived hard to achieve his dream as a tennis player. Despite the hardships, he believes that he was forced to grow on his own and believes that was right. Comparing today’s situation in the tennis world, he said, “Now it’s all different. The kids have coaches and media training at the age of 16, they don’t even know what they are about at 16.”

McEnroe’s impressive career

Unquestionably, the former American tennis star is among the best players to have made it to the biggest stage in tennis from the United States. In 1980, he achieved the unique feat of holding the number one rank in the ATP rankings in both singles and doubles. Over the course of his stellar career, he won 77 titles in singles, with a win-loss ratio of 883-198 matches. 

WATCH THIS STORY –  John McEnroe, Boris Becker and Others in the Most Shocking Moments of Wimbledon Championships.

The seven-time Grand Slam champion has won 25 singles titles, including his Grand Slam wins. However, he was more known for his explosive nature both on and off the tennis court.