John McEnroe's rant addressed to Monfils...

R

Ross K

Legend
Anyone hear it on the BBC coverage just now?... He personally addressed Monfils and said he hoped he got to hear this...

Okay, I'm paraphrasing or whatever but he said Monfils, who is 6 ft 4 or something, was playing like a 12 year old, and that he was totally pushed around by a 5ft 10 scrawny little guy... a little guy who in terms of determination and fight was one of the goat, whereas Monfils was completely happy to play this maddeningly passive (and woefully erratic, I may add) b-line game and... well, he was a pusher (and, yes, he did actually use the p word! :))

Thing is, I used to be a big fan of Monfils, but I agree with every word McEnroe scathingly delivered. Watching the athletic, rangy, big hitting Frenchman Monfils just merrily pushing the ball back the entire time and playing like he was on a clay court and letting Hewitt take the initiative was completely frustrating and baffling to behold! :confused:

Well said, John!... Gael Monfils though???... what is going on there?

R.
 
Monfils will never change, probably every coach on earth has told him to get more aggressive etc but he likes to stay back 30' behind the baseline.
 
If McEnroe wants to help Monfils, he could talk to him in private, give him advice in private, instead of dissing him in public. At least Monfils has some class on the court instead of the inpolite jerk that McEnroe was throughout his career insulting lines people and referees like some punk.
 
samboy01 said:
If McEnroe wants to help Monfils, he could talk to him in private, give him advice in private, instead of dissing him in public. At least Monfils has some class on the court instead of the inpolite jerk that McEnroe was throughout his career insulting lines people and referees like some punk.
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Monfils needs some PUNK to get more aggressive IMO
 
Shaolin said:
Monfils will never change, probably every coach on earth has told him to get more aggressive etc but he likes to stay back 30' behind the baseline.
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Not quite, but it's close:
Every coach i have ever had has told me to be more aggressive. They don't understand that I'm a rat, I am all over the place
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-Gael Monfils

Former fan, he's now one of my least favorites
 
Commentators are paid to comment. We need a little more chili pepper in the brew now and then. Mac works for BBC (and nearly everyone else, it seems)....rants on the air are fine with me.
 
samboy01 said:
If McEnroe wants to help Monfils, he could talk to him in private, give him advice in private, instead of dissing him in public. At least Monfils has some class on the court instead of the inpolite jerk that McEnroe was throughout his career insulting lines people and referees like some punk.
Click to expand...

To be fair mac did say he had brought this up with Roger Rashid, Monfils Coach countless times, so you cant say Mac hasnt gone to him before dissing him in public.

If you actually heard mac he was so frustrated with Monfils and said a few times that "this guy is wasting his talent" so I actually think Mac wants the best for him rather than dissing him. He also defended his rant by saying "Monfils NEEDS telling"
 
Monfils has a fantastic life thanks to French tennis federation. And that's enough for him. OTOH, Nich Mahut has the heart of Champion....
 
samboy01 said:
If McEnroe wants to help Monfils, he could talk to him in private, give him advice in private, instead of dissing him in public. At least Monfils has some class on the court instead of the inpolite jerk that McEnroe was throughout his career insulting lines people and referees like some punk.
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McEnroe has made a career out of dissing people in public, first umpires and fellow players, now people from the commentary booth. Im surprised that he hasnt caught a beatdown from someone yet, although he came close with the Peter Luczak incident.
 
Shaolin said:
McEnroe has made a career out of dissing people in public, first umpires and fellow players, now people from the commentary booth. Im surprised that he hasnt caught a beatdown from someone yet, although he came close with the Peter Luczak incident.
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Really? What happened?
 
Legend of Borg said:
Really? What happened?
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Luczak was getting killed by Hewitt one year at the AO and McEnroe was carrying on and on about it, basically calling Luzak a worthless chump who shouldnt even be on the court as Hewitt (dont remember his exact words but he was really tearing Luczak a new one)....anyway, Luzak's brother or friend heard it on tv and physically confronted McEnroe, I guess he almost attacked him but was restrained or something, probably a good thing for the both of them.
 
Everyone has said it time and time again Monfils is wasting his speed and strength. Not only is he big but he is so fast for a guy his size. He could be WORSE THAN DEL PO. However he pushes so damn much Imagine Del Potro's power and Monfils' speed. Well That's what Monfils could be...key word is could.
 
Kostas said:
Is this a joke?

Just curious.
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I thought the behaviour of Monfils during today's match with Hewitt was strange at times, if not unprofessional. At least once he gave up in a rally, admittedly one he would have lost anyway, but true champions always leave their blood and guts on the court. Also, Monfils' apparent lack of any tactical or strategic sense made for some very frustrating viewing, especially for fans of French players. Monfils still has a lot to learn but, although he is still relatively young, he might just not be interested in improving anymore.
 
Shaolin said:
Luczak was getting killed by Hewitt one year at the AO and McEnroe was carrying on and on about it, basically calling Luzak a worthless chump who shouldnt even be on the court as Hewitt (dont remember his exact words but he was really tearing Luczak a new one)....anyway, Luzak's brother or friend heard it on tv and physically confronted McEnroe, I guess he almost attacked him but was restrained or something, probably a good thing for the both of them.
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Their H2H suggest they only met once at this year's Halle tournament. Maybe it wasn't Hewitt?

http://www.atpworldtour.com/Players/Head-To-Head.aspx?pId=L515&oId=H432
 
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Shaolin said:
Yeah, sorry I just looked it up too, it must have been another player. Pretty sure it was at the AO and it was an early round (first or second) encounter.
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No problem. I'm surprised J Mac made those comments. He was always hot headed, but I didn't think he would go that far, especially since he has been retired for a while.
 
If Mac was calling the match for the BBC he has the right to say whatever he wants. And everything he said was true.
 
For once, I agree with JMac. It's so annoying watching Monfils nowadays. Seems like all he cares about is to hit a "beautiful" shot.

JMac seems to have gotten past bashing Gulbis.
 
Ross K said:
Anyone hear it on the BBC coverage just now?... He personally addressed Monfils and said he hoped he got to hear this...

Okay, I'm paraphrasing or whatever but he said Monfils, who is 6 ft 4 or something, was playing like a 12 year old, and that he was totally pushed around by a 5ft 10 scrawny little guy... a little guy who in terms of determination and fight was one of the goat, whereas Monfils was completely happy to play this maddeningly passive (and woefully erratic, I may add) b-line game and... well, he was a pusher (and, yes, he did actually use the p word! :))

Thing is, I used to be a big fan of Monfils, but I agree with every word McEnroe scathingly delivered. Watching the athletic, rangy, big hitting Frenchman Monfils just merrily pushing the ball back the entire time and playing like he was on a clay court and letting Hewitt take the initiative was completely frustrating and baffling to behold! :confused:

Well said, John!... Gael Monfils though???... what is going on there?

R.
Click to expand...

Monfils has always played this way. For a minute they were hyping him and I couldn't understand why. When I said this, of course there were those who wanted to argue, but the fact remains, depending on who Le Monf's playing you can pretty much guess the result. He's played a few good matches. Very few, and yes, it's maddening.
 
I value my opinion enough to consider it, defend and if need be, change it. Not a card carrying member of the bandwagon mentality. The minority rocks. :p
 
I think it was the pressure of Centre Court because on Ct. 5 and 2 he was a beast through 1st/2nd round. He prob got a bit nervous in the big court, same thing happened to Dent on Weds.

Like the fast DelPo description, shows his true potential. But it does get frustrating to root for a guy who can get so close yet so far to it.
 
Shaolin said:
Monfils will never change, probably every coach on earth has told him to get more aggressive etc but he likes to stay back 30' behind the baseline.
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There is some irony in the context of this match here.

Frequently coaches try and get Hewitt to be more aggressive, and fail. In fact, one of the reasons Rasheed split with Hewitt was this very issue from memory.

Maybe Rasheed just likes headbutting brick walls over this issue!
 
When grass courts were normal (faster, as they used to be) this playstyle wouldn't allow him to get as far as he did.
 
Shaolin said:
Luczak was getting killed by Hewitt one year at the AO and McEnroe was carrying on and on about it, basically calling Luzak a worthless chump who shouldnt even be on the court as Hewitt (dont remember his exact words but he was really tearing Luczak a new one)....anyway, Luzak's brother or friend heard it on tv and physically confronted McEnroe, I guess he almost attacked him but was restrained or something, probably a good thing for the both of them.
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The other player was Todd Larkham, not Peter Luczak.
 
It seems the only time he actually goes for aggressive shots is when he's far in a tournament (quarters or better), where there's a very large crowd and he can show off his flashy game. However playing for style doesn't exactly rack up the W's either. A tactical grass player La Monf will never be.....
 
INFphoto_1167342-500x652.jpg
bossing around
zzmonfils_narrowweb__300x4220.jpg
:lol:
 
Shaolin said:
Luczak was getting killed by Hewitt one year at the AO and McEnroe was carrying on and on about it, basically calling Luzak a worthless chump who shouldnt even be on the court as Hewitt (dont remember his exact words but he was really tearing Luczak a new one)....anyway, Luzak's brother or friend heard it on tv and physically confronted McEnroe, I guess he almost attacked him but was restrained or something, probably a good thing for the both of them.
Click to expand...

That was Todd Larkham, not Peter Luczak.

http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/11/06/1068013328002.html?from=storyrhs

Interestingly, Larkham's cousin Stephen used to play for Australia in Rugby Union.
 
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Monfils has been told.

rnrockz1 said:
Monfils is a huge underachiever. He needs a strict coach.
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Rasheed had him on the practice court 15 minutes after beating Safin in Miami, and working on hitting more aggressively. Apparently, he isn't comfortbale enough playing more agressively in a match.
 
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