John McEnroe put himself into contention to become Andy Murray's next coach



John McEnroe would consider becoming Andy Murray’s coach if the Scot made an approach, the tennis legend revealed last night.



The seven-time Grand Slam singles winner said he would gladly talk to the current Wimbledon champion, who is looking for someone to replace Ivan Lendl.



Asked directly whether he would consider it, McEnroe replied: ‘Yes, of course.’



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Murray parted company, amicably, with Lendl in March due to the Czech being unable to focus more fully on the role, but McEnroe insisted that his other commitments would not necessarily rule him out.



‘Some of these situations are tempting for anyone and you get into a part-time role,’ he said. ‘It is nice to see some of the other players of my generation back around the game. It is a nice shot in the arm for them, as well as the sport.



‘My phone has not been ringing off the hook but, at the same time, if the right situation came along…



‘I am pretty busy doing my own thing but when you get opportunities to coach great players, it is definitely something that would be tempting to think about.’



McEnroe, who will be competing at the Brodies Champions of Tennis event in Edinburgh in June, said he expected Murray to take his time in selecting a new coach as he prepared for the French Open later this month and then Wimbledon.



‘I don’t think Andy can simply pick up and turn to another person that easily,’ said the tennis legend. ‘That is probably why he is not with another person just now.



‘He will find someone he is willing to take that chance with and there are plenty of people that would love to do it. It’s a great job to be able to work with someone as good as him.



‘I am sure there are plenty of people applying for the job. It is just a matter of him settling down and deciding where he wants to go.’



After back surgery and his split from Lendl, McEnroe believes Murray is currently ‘a notch or two’ down from where he was and needs everything in place to help him get back to the top ahead of Wimbledon. Hence the need to make the right choice of coach.



‘He seems to be, from what I see, looking good physically but I guess he needs some matches and confidence to get back where he was when he won Wimbledon,’ he continued.



‘With Ivan and him splitting, that was another surprise to me so it is hard to tell where he is mentally.



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‘At this stage, you have got to say he is a notch or two below from where he was when he won Wimbledon and we are coming into the clay court season that is the most difficult part of the season for him.



‘It will be interesting to see how he handles the clay because how seriously will he take that? How much will he play?



‘In certain ways, I would guess, he does not want to risk playing too much if he is not all the way back both physically and mentally. He will hope by the time Wimbledon comes around, he will be back at 100 per cent so he has at least a shot at defending his title.’



What the Grand Slam legend believes Murray does have is time on his side in picking a coach and a reduction in pressure to win Wimbledon after his success last year.



‘There is always going to be pressure on Andy to win but it will significantly less because he has won and he has broken the jinx and been able to lift the trophy,’ said McEnroe.



‘He has two majors under his belt and he won the Olympics so I would be shocked if there is the same amount of pressure.



‘That does not mean people don’t hope he does well at Wimbledon and I am sure he will want to do that himself but it is nowhere near the same pressure than it was all these other years until he won last year.’



McEnroe said he should simply enjoy his current success, to keep working hard and try and get challenging for Grand Slams — although he wasn’t certain he would be able to jump ahead of Federer, Rafa Nadal and Djokovic in the short term.



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‘I think that Andy certainly belongs in the top four,’ he said. ‘I’m looking at Roger play and I’m amazed at how well he’s moving - obviously we know how well he can play, but he seems to be moving better than he has the last three, four, five years.



‘Andy’s quite a bit younger, so there’s no reason to believe that if he gets back to peak form he couldn’t get back there.



‘I don’t want to wish something bad on other guys, but in terms of the other guys ahead of him, overall he’s got more to his game. And to me he should be at worst No 4 in the world.



‘Just now I would simply have him reflect on his success over the last couple of years. This is assuming he’s healthy - if he’s not healthy, he’s going to be down on himself as much as anyone else.



‘But if he’s healthy, keep in mind what he’s accomplished. I don’t think he needs to ramp up the pressure.



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'No one can ever take away the Wimbledon and the US Open and the Olympic win that he had. These are opportunities that have come about through his hard work. That’s what I would tell him.



‘I’m guessing if Andy’s back was bothering him for the past couple of years he didn’t expect to come all the way back in three months following surgery. He probably assumed that he would be peaking for the French or at the latest Wimbledon.



‘He’s just got to go with his instincts, because it was his instincts that took him to where he was able to win. And I’m guessing his instincts were to make sure he was most ready to play at Wimbledon.’



John McEnroe will be playing in the Brodies Champions of Tennis – The Legends Return from June 19-22 in Edinburgh. Tickets and full tournament schedule are available at www.championsoftennis.com



