"People were saying I was on the way to being the greatest": When John McEnroe made honest admission about what 'cost him' chance to become the GOAT

John McEnroe once shed light on his regrets regarding his tennis career. The American candidly disclosed how he held himself back from living up to his potential of becoming the greatest player in history.

McEnroe was on the trajectory to greatness after winning his maiden Grand Slam title at the 1979 US Open at the age of 20. By the time he turned 25, the American had racked up seven Major titles and seemed poised to add many more to his tally. However, his triumph at the 1984 edition of the New York Major ended up being the final singles Grand Slam crown of his career.

In an interview with the New York Post in 2019, John McEnroe admitted that he hadn't expected his victory at the 1984 US Open to mark the final Major singles title of his career. The American revealed that it took him a while to accept the "disappointing" reality.

"I didn’t think that would be my last one. It’s obviously disappointing and I had to, over time, accept that. It wasn’t easy. I still felt I could do it for a while. I was waiting for it to click in. It just didn’t," John McEnroe said.

McEnroe also disclosed that many believed he was on the path to becoming the greatest player in history in 1984. However, the former World No. 1 confessed that he had denied himself the opportunity to earn that title by making no effort to improve his game.

"People were saying that [in 1984] I was on the way to being the greatest. It’s easy to be a backseat driver. Instead of trying to move forward and improve my game, I felt I waited to see what other people would do. That ended up costing me. I didn’t add to my game — change my forehand, hit it subtly different. You need to look to add something," he added.

In order to address his decline, John McEnroe took a six-month break from professional tennis in 1986. Although he won three tour-level titles upon his return later that year, McEnroe never regained his best form and eventually ended his singles career in 1994.

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"I’m hoping I’m in the top 10" - John McEnroe on where he ranks on the list of the greatest players

John McEnroe - Source: Getty

During the same interview, John McEnroe acknowledged that he kept slipping down in the rankings of the greatest men's players of all time. Nevertheless, the former World No. 1 expressed his hope that he would retain his place in the top 10 when all was said and done.

"I keep dropping in the overall rankings. I’m hoping I’m in the top 10. I’m hopefully somewhere between seven to 10," McEnroe said.

By 2019, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic had each surpassed Pete Sampras' long-held record of 14 Grand Slam titles, the most by a male player in the Open Era. Bjorn Borg followed with 11 Major titles under his belt, while Andre Agassi, Jimmy Connors, and Ivan Lendl won eight Slams each.

With seven Grand Slam titles to their names, John McEnroe and Mats Wilander round out the top 10 in the list of the ATP players with most Majors in the Open Era.