John McEnroe retirement: Explaining why the American legend delivered a 'eulogy' during French Open final between Carlos Alcaraz & Alexander Zverev

John McEnroe confused millions of NBC viewers during the 2024 French Open men's final between Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev, delivering a 'eulogy' and thanking the network for the opportunity to talk on the air. It has lead many to wonder if the American legend is leaving his commentary job for good, which is just not the case.

What has happened is that the French Open has entered into a new 10-year deal with TNT Sports for broadcast in the United States starting next year, moving away from NBC after their 12-year partnership ran its course.

The UK-based group is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery and has signed a deal worth $650 million with Roland Garros. TNT Sports is also the current holder of French Open rights in Europe through the Eurosport Networks.

The partnership is set to commence from next year, meaning this was McEnroe's final match commentating the French Open as part of NBC. It is why he took the time to thank the network, having worked with the company since 1992.

Incidentally, his first job working in broadcasting came during the French Open that year, when he worked as an analyst for NBC. Later that year, he also started commentating during Wimbledon for the network.

John McEnroe will still commentate during other Grand Slams at the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open, where ESPN holds the rights for broadcast in the United States. He is also still available to work for the BBC during Wimbledon telecast in the UK, as he has done in the past.

John McEnroe spoke about Carlos Alcaraz ahead of French Open final

2024 French Open - Day 15

Prior to the start of the French Open final between Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev, John McEnroe lavished praise on the Spaniard during the pre-match show. McEnroe revealed that Alcaraz was his favorite player to watch and that he has never seen anyone as skilled at the age of 21.

The American, in fact, proclaimed that he was better than Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic at the same age, adding that tennis needed Alcaraz to stay around for a long time for its own good.

"Just for the record, Carlos Alcaraz is my favorite player to watch. He's the most skilled young man I've ever seen playing at this age. It's hard to imagine he can keep improving cause he is so good at everything already," McEnroe said.

"He's better than Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic at 21 for me... Alcaraz is a unique individual that we need around in the sport for long time. You gotta love what he brings to the sport," he added.