As the clay courts of Roland Garros heat up, tennis legend John McEnroe has stepped into the spotlight, not with a racquet, but with his opinion on the ever-persistent GOAT (Greatest of All Time) debate. The former world No. 1 offered a surface-by-surface breakdown of the sport’s all-time greats, while also sharing the name of the player who first inspired him to pick up a racquet.
With the French Open underway, one of the tournament’s most heartfelt pre-event moments came courtesy of Rafael Nadal. The 14-time Roland Garros champion was honored with a tribute from tournament organizers, recognizing his unprecedented dominance on clay. Fittingly, his footprint is now immortalized on Court Philippe-Chatrier in Paris, a symbol of his lasting legacy.
Speaking ahead of the tribute, McEnroe addressed the GOAT discussion by spotlighting the best players on each surface. He aligned the Big Three, Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Roger Federer, with their respective strongholds and added a personal touch by naming his childhood idol and tennis icon, Rod Laver.
For McEnroe, the tennis Mount Rushmore is clear: Nadal, Djokovic, Federer, and Laver. But he didn’t stop at listing names. He attributed each legend’s greatness to their unique dominance.
McEnroe names his GOAT picks by surface
When asked to name the greatest of all time on each tennis surface, McEnroe didn’t hesitate. Starting with clay, he gave the nod to Nadal, fresh off being honored by Roland Garros.
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“Rafael Nadal, on the surface we’re going to see over the next couple of weeks, without a doubt, it’s him on clay at Roland Garros,” McEnroe said during a guest appearance on Inside the NBA last weekend.
After praising Nadal, McEnroe turned his attention to hard courts, responding to Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley’s follow-up. “The best hard-court player of all time would be Novak Djokovic,” he said without hesitation.
When it came to grass, McEnroe’s choice was just as emphatic. “We also play on grass for one month a year, which I would give to Roger Federer,” he noted. He also used the moment to pay tribute to one of his childhood idols. “To me, Rod Laver, way back when, was my idol,” McEnroe added.
McEnroe recalls his Roland Garros nightmare
While reflecting on his GOAT picks, McEnroe also opened up about what he called the worst moment of his tennis career, losing the 1984 French Open final to Ivan Lendl. “I was up two sets. My old buddy Ahmad Rashad pointed at me, waved, and said, ‘You’re going to win this. I’ll see you later.’ And I told him, ‘Don’t leave yet, it’s not over until it’s over.’ Then I blew it and lost 7–5 in the fifth,” McEnroe said.
McEnroe recalled: “To this day, those first two sets were arguably the greatest tennis I ever played. But it turned into a nightmare. Every time I go to Paris, I relive it. I still have a couple of nightmares about what I should’ve done differently.”
