What McEnroe ‘really respects’ about Djokovic, Nadal & Federer | ATP tour | Tennis

No 1 club

What McEnroe ‘really respects’ about Djokovic, Nadal & Federer

Legendary lefty McEnroe talks about the significance of being ranked No. 1 in the world in Dallas
February 15, 2026

John McEnroe is one of the most prolific members of the ATP No. 1 Club, after spending 170 weeks at the top of men’s tennis and four times ATP Year End No. 1, presented by PIF finishes. But decades after his retirement, the American continues to be introduced to the sport.

During an interview with ATP Media at the Nexo Dallas Open, McEnroe explained how much he “really respects” one thing in particular about Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and most recently Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

“They keep pushing. It may be a little late, but the lesson I learned is that maybe I should have pushed a little harder instead of waiting for what would happen,” McEnroe said. “So you get life lessons while dealing with all these things, which will probably make you a better person later.”

The legendary left-hander became the number 1 player in the PIF ATP rankings for the first time in March 1980.

“The first time I reached No. 1 on the computer was a different moment than when I was No. 1 and there was no doubt about that,” McEnroe said. “There was probably a year and a half between what happened in Memphis in February ’80 and September at the ’81 US Open, when I supplanted Bjorn as No. 1 at the time.”

When McEnroe became No. 1, his great rival, Bjorn Borg, was still at the top of the sport. But 1981 would prove to be the iconic Swede’s last full-time season.

“When it happened, unfortunately it coincided, as it turned out, with my biggest rival’s decision not to play anymore. So it was heartbreaking in a way,” McEnroe said. “That led to me struggling with the feeling that I had stumbled into something that was a bit overwhelming. And it took me a while to figure it out. And by the time I figured it out, I still ended up at No. 1 in the third and fourth years. But after that, when I lifted myself to that level, I thought, ‘Okay, now I showed them.'”

McEnroe’s last spell at World No. 1 ended in September 1985. More than four decades later, he still spends weeks ranked seventh out of 29 ATP No. 1 Club members at the top of the sport.

“I appreciated it at the time, but I also appreciated being No. 2 in the world. I’ve had this conversation with Bjorn quite a few times,” McEnroe said. “He said, ‘Look, if you’re not No. 1, what difference does it make if you’re No. 2 or 100?’ I go, ‘Well, [No.] 2 is much better than 100’. So it just depends on how you look at it.

“For me, there are a lot of people trying to do their thing. So if you’ve given the best you can give and you were five in the world or you’re 50, whatever it is, then the pride you have to have is more than, ‘Okay, I’m number 1 and therefore I have to behave a certain way.’

No one will ever be able to take away what McEnroe accomplished in tennis, and those achievements are a major reason why fans still flock to the New Yorker.

McEnroe said: “For me, ultimately, I think it feels better to be able to say over a period of three or four years that I was the best and there were other years where I was one of the two of the three best, as you get older.”