ESPN Tennis commentators Mary Joe Fernandez and Patrick McEnroe previewed the 2026 The Championships, Wimbledon, on a June 22 media conference call.
Q: Of course, there was a time in the tennis boom years when we had as many as 40-something U.S. players in the top 100. It’s different times. I think as of today we have 15 men and 15 women in the top 100. We’re coming into Wimbledon with some good momentum. Talk about not only just coming into Wimbledon, but sort of the state of U.S. tennis, where you think we are.
FERNANDEZ: Yes, I mean, I think there are so many players that have been doing really, really well. It’s nice to see so many Americans on both the men’s and women’s side making moves.
The grass court season obviously is a short one. The men particularly have been crushing it. Ben won, Tommy Paul getting to the final, Tiafoe winning. There’s good momentum there. Pegula lost the final yesterday. I feel like her game is very well-suited for the surface. You have Anisimova last year reach the final. So great to see Navarro doing well.
In general, we have a lot of possibilities. Taylor Fritz has loved playing on the grass the last few years, has had great results. I think there’s an opportunity there on both sides, I really do.
The one that I guess has had the toughest time is Coco Gauff. I’d like to see what kind of adjustments she’ll make this year.
I think a lot will depend on the draws. When the draws come out, if you get the big hitter like she did last year, first round is always tricky. If there is a way for her to get through that first week and get some confidence, if the serve is working, with her movement, she should be able to hopefully improve.
I’m excited. I think it’s more wide open than we’ve seen in years past. Even on the men’s side, yes, Sinner is the big favorite. I think players now know that they can do it.
I’m excited for what’s to come with Americans, not just at Wimbledon but looking ahead to the US Open as well.
McENROE: Mary Joe, always right on target. I think the likelihood is more still that we’ll have a women’s champion rather than a men’s for the reasons Mary Joe pointed out.
I think Anisimova is bound to win a major within the next couple years. Obviously Wimbledon is a great place for her, despite what happened in the final last year.
Pegula, I mean, feel like she deserves to win one. She’s almost like Zverev was in Paris. You feel like if she can get there, be there late, she’s got a shot.
I think the men’s is pretty interesting, though. With Alcaraz out, Sinner of course is the favorite, but he hasn’t played a match since that match he had to retire — he didn’t retire, but the heat got to him in Paris.
I was a little surprised he didn’t play at least one tune-up tournament on grass. He obviously came into Paris on an unbelievable hot streak. It sounds like he needed to regroup, do some tests on his body, try to figure out what’s going on there.
I do think with Zverev winning, it kind of changes the mindset a little bit of the other players, thinking, Wow. Obviously there’s Djokovic still there lurking. There’s Sinner. If you’re Ben Shelton, Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Learner Tien should be an excellent player on grass, Michelsen should be dangerous. Tiafoe obviously is going to come in with a lot of confidence.
I love what he said after his match yesterday, having lost the heartbreaker in Paris, such a huge opportunity, but he found a way to turn it around mentally.
I think there could be something come from one of the American men. I sure hope so. By ‘big’ I mean making at least the semis.
Q: In terms of Serena’s comeback, how audacious is it for her to enter the singles draw without playing a singles match for so long? Can you imagine anybody else doing that?
FERNANDEZ: It’s pretty bold, I have to say. I always had an inkling that she would. I didn’t see her just coming back to play doubles. I think to me it’s a sign of confidence that she feels like she’s ready.
I’m excited. I’m excited to see how she’s playing, how she’s moving, how the serve is firing. I saw a little bit of the doubles, her first round. It looked like she was getting pretty good miles per hour on the serve.
But yes, that just shows you a sign of confidence that you don’t need matches going into your first tournament back after four years. If anybody can do it, it’s Serena.
I remember when Martina played at Wimbledon, I think she was 47. I think she played before. Still it’s a remarkable testimony to her that she has that confidence that she can do it.
I’m looking forward to watching her, to the draw coming out. No one’s going to want to face her. Let’s see how it goes.
McENROE: I would call this Serena being Serena. It’s very Serena like to do something audacious like this.
I didn’t think for one minute she was coming back to play doubles. It should be pretty cool, pretty exciting. Hopefully she’ll be able to be competitive right off the bat.
I do want to also mention, this is your first time Andrew on the call. I’ll give a shout-out to our great buddy Howard, a big part of what he did, all of us did. Great person, great man. Hoping he’ll be watching Wimbledon from above.
Q: With this prize money debate, how much more difficult is it for Wimbledon to achieve its balancing act of accessibility? Obviously, they’ve got their premium hospitality stuff, but at the same time you can line up in the queue and bring in a bottle of champagne of your own. When you have the demands for more money, how much harder is that balancing act becoming for Wimbledon?
McENROE: I think it’s not that difficult. I think they make a tremendous amount of money. I’m not talking just about Wimbledon, but the other majors as well. The percentage they give out of their complete amount that they bring in is pretty low.
I think the players have the right to ask for a little bit more. I don’t think anyone’s thinking they should get 40% or 50% like they do in other sports. But mid-teens is pretty low.
Obviously, the majors are the ones that make the most money. They bring in the most eyeballs, which they deserve. They put the money back into the facilities for the players, the fans, and in the media.
As we’ve just seen them raising the prize money slightly, the US Open I think will do the same. The players, especially in the last four or five years after COVID when the prize money went down, now we see what’s happening at all the tournaments. Just not in the later rounds, but in early rounds, the demand for tickets and prices have been going up exponentially, not to mention what the events are bringing in through sponsorship and as you said hospitality.
I think they can find a way to give the players a little bit more and also do the other things they’re doing, growing the sport and supporting community tennis, not just in England, but here in the United States as well.
FERNANDEZ: I would echo all those sentiments. I think it’s great to see the players unite on both sides, really come together. They’re being fair. I don’t think they’re asking for anything outrageous. I think Wimbledon, like the other ones, bring in a lot of money. They’re the four biggest tournaments of the year. They do a lot with the revenue. Like Patrick said, they give back to the tournament, grassroots, everything. But you need the players. It goes both ways.
I feel like it’s only fair that they share appropriately with the main actors on the stage.
Q: Serena, I believe she’s the last woman to successfully defend Wimbledon. Different champions since 2016. Do you see that continuing? Also, with Sabalenka, why hasn’t she broken through on grass? With the two back-to-back bagels and losses, how do you view Sabalenka going into this tournament?
FERNANDEZ: I am a little concerned about Sabalenka, to be honest with you, because she was coming in playing really well. I feel like her game translates to all the surfaces. It should translate to the grass with how powerful she hits the ball. She’s got a weapon in the serve, weapon in the returns.
What happened in Paris, she really fell apart. The conditions got to her again. Losing I think it was nine of 10 or 10 of 11 games in a row was a bit of a shock.
Even though I think she’s overcome a lot in the years, won the four majors, been No. 1 for a while, she obviously still struggles with it. Let’s see how she bounces back.
To me she’s still the favorite to win Wimbledon, but not as clear of a favorite as I would have picked her a month ago. We’ll see. Nine different champions in the last nine years, that just shows you more wide open than ever.
Grass is just different, right? It’s just not a surface that you see that the players get to play on very often. A lot of upsets happen, especially in the first week.
Who’s comfortable with the movement, who’s playing those big points. The margins are smaller on the grass, you see less breaks of serve on the grass. We’ll see.
But at first I kind of questioned why Serena would come back on the grass because I think it’s a tough surface right away to do well on. I guess where she feels at home. She’s won it seven times. The last two times she played, she lost in the opening round. It makes for a very interesting start to Wimbledon, for sure.
McENROE: I think it’s a huge red flag for Sabalenka. She’s lost the last two matches 6-Love in the third. I find that very shocking, especially for a player with her kind of firepower.
I think Zverev had a great comment about if someone asked me, you got a great serve, you got a great return, you hit the ball hard, how come you haven’t done well at Wimbledon. He just kind of laughed and said, That has nothing to do with it. It’s all about movement, all about movement, and being comfortable on the grass.
I think Sabalenka has done better over the years. I would say she’s a slightly better mover comparably to Zverev on the men’s side. That’s why guys like Isner and the big guys, he had the one run when he made the semis, but look at Isner, how come the guy can’t win Wimbledon? It’s all about quick movement, the athleticism.
I think Rybakina is a favorite because of the way she hits the ball. I think she’s a little more comfortable with her movement, even though she’s tall, like Sabalenka. I think she feels more comfortable moving. I think she’s got the purest grass court game of anyone out there on the women’s side.
Q: Mary Joe, when you broke through as a teen, the pathway for tennis seemed kind of singular. You turned pro early, commit. Now players, even someone as young as Andreeva, they’re not as young as they used to be, but seem to have more options. How does having more options take pressure off or put pressure on teens coming up? The flipside is with Serena talking about coming back, the WTA having made accommodations for mothers, how has it shaped what a career is for women?
FERNANDEZ: Yes, so when I started back in I guess it was 1984/85, there were a lot of young players doing well. I sort of followed in the footsteps of the players I grew up with, whether it was Steffi Graf, Gabriela Sabatini, Maleeva. They were all doing really well as teenagers. It was almost as if you won the Orange Bowl, the international junior event at the end of the year, the 18s, the next step was to play pro.
Really going to school wasn’t an option. If you had to go to school, means you weren’t good enough to play on the tour. That’s obviously changed. The game definitely got more physical as the years went on. It got harder for teenagers to excel both on the men’s and women’s side.
I do think it takes pressure off knowing that you don’t have to do unbelievably well right away. I love that college has become a steppingstone for players to transition to the pro tour, as well.
I think it’s great. I think now players are better equipped. They have teams now. They work much harder on the physical side of things. I remember speaking the other day to my children. When I see these players warm up for matches, I feel like that’s what I did in the off-seasons. Everything has gotten faster, stronger, and better. Before you went out, stretched a little bit, and played. Now it’s much more professional, for sure.
So yes, I think the pressure is definitely better. Andreeva didn’t go to school, but she had time. She day in and day out has been working on her game. The mental side has been the toughest part for her. It came together for her at the right time in Paris.
I like where we are now. I like the longevity of these players. I retired when I was 28. When I tell people that they say, Wow, you were so young. I started when I was 13.
To come back, there was never even a thought. I never even thought of coming back after I had a child. Only a few had done it before me. I think if I played now, that would definitely be in the back of my mind, that you could take the time to have a child and then come back to the tour.
I think that’s wonderful. I think Azarenka had a lot to do with it. Obviously, Serena, when she came back the first time after having Olympia, as well, to put an emphasis on it not being an injury, right? It’s not an injury. It’s part of a women’s trajectory.
I think it’s wonderful to see all these mothers doing so well like Svitolina, Bencic. I think it’s inspiring other mothers to be able to do that.
It’s exciting. But it’s a great question because it did switch midway through there where you had to be young to do well. Now you’re seeing players peak a little bit later in their careers.
Q: Andy Roddick is going to be joining you at Wimbledon. What do you think he brings to the table in terms of analysis and experience?
McENROE: A lot. He’s got a great personality. He’s been doing his podcast, which has been incredibly successful. Obviously as player we know what he did winning the US Open, multiple other finals, including a few at Wimbledon. He’s very outspoken, very smart, and opinionated. I think he’s going to be amazing. It will be a lot of fun to work with him.
FERNANDEZ: I’m excited, too. He’s so witty, just quick. He knows tennis inside-out. The podcast is so much fun to listen to. He has great insights. We’re really looking forward to having him on our ESPN team.
Q: I’m going to ask you to look past Wimbledon to the hard court season. Mary Joe, you started to allude to it earlier, particularly among the women as we head into the US Open. Typically hard court players, the power-play is what wins on the neutralized US Open surface. We’ve seen the finesse of a Mirra Andreeva and Chwalinska lately. Can they come through on the hard court surface or should we be looking at Sabalenka, Rybakina, Coco?
FERNANDEZ: I think the hard court suits a lot more players. I guess it’s not as specialized a surface as you would say red clay or grass is. Having variety always helps. I think Andreeva can translate really well to it. We’ve seen her, she’s won Indian Wells before. She’s got a complete game. I think she’s only getting better and better.
Chwalinska was a huge surprise coming through qualifying. I’m interested to see how her game will translate. She doesn’t have a lot of power but has variety and smarts out there.
You go with the big hitters. I don’t consider Coco a big hitter and she’s won the US Open. Being able to have the balance of offense and defense, controlled aggression, I think is really important once you get onto the hard courts.
But we’ll see. I like complete players. I feel like Sabalenka has added a lot to her game. She’s trying to come in a little bit more, add some dropshots, things like that. Rybakina in Australia impressed everybody, as well.
It’s still in my opinion going to be open. There’s not going to be a clear, clear favorite going into the US Open. It will be interesting. It will be interesting. We’ll see a little bit more variety going into it.
I’ve enjoyed seeing Iva Jovic coming through. Played in Australia. I like that she played well on the clay. She’s playing well on the grass. That’s another game that I think can translate.
The Americans, again, have a really good opportunity.
McENROE: I will add to that, I think Iva Jovic is going to make a big move at Wimbledon. I think she’s going to be awesome on grass.
I think there’s a couple of factors where I think it’s harder for someone to sort of come out of nowhere, specifically at the Open. You could even make the case on hard court. It’s later in the year. You don’t see as many surprises. The nature of the surface, as you mentioned in your question, certainly plays a big part of it.
I think also especially when you get to New York, the size of the stadium is so massive that I think a lot of players, when they first come to New York, they’re a little bit freaked out by it because it’s so loud and so big.
It’s just another reason why I think it’s more difficult for someone that we haven’t heard of, like we saw in Paris, is going to come out and make a huge run. I think for multiple reasons you don’t see a ton of surprises.
I’d be surprised for a big surprise.
Q: Among Americans in the second tier, who do you see as a possible third round threat or sneaking into the second week and why? I’m talking about Robin Montgomery and Ashlyn Krueger, Brooksby, maybe Tien.
FERNANDEZ: All of them are trying to break through. Montgomery just won a tournament. I like her game a lot. I’ve followed her since she was a junior. Has a really good lefty serve. It was great to see Svajda breakthrough in Paris. I think it will be a little tougher for him on the grass. He’s not a big guy, doesn’t have a big serve.
I’m looking forward to watching Ethan Quinn play on the grass. I think with his big serve and big forehand and his ability to come forward, I think he could potentially have a good tournament.
Patrick mentioned Learner before. I love his game. I think it translates to all surfaces, but I think on grass he’s going to be very good.
On the women’s side, I’m with Patrick with Iva. I think she’s going to have a great time on the grass, as well, with her game style.
Michelsen, I think he is an outsider too. Big serve, great backhand, moves well on the surface. There are possibilities outside the ones that are coming in with momentum, for sure.
McENROE: I think I’d put Learner Tien at the top tier of American men. I think he’s already top 20, right around there. To me he’s a top-tier guy.
I like Ethan. I think he’s very athletic. That could give him a really good chance.
I really like Svajda. I rarely disagree with Mary Joe. I’m not saying I’m disagreeing, but I think his game is perfectly suited for grass because he’s one of those guys that can take the ball on the rise, he’s got an amazing backhand. I think the surface will actually help his serve, which has improved quite a bit. That’s something he worked on a lot the last year. I really like what I’m seeing from him.
I mentioned Jovic. She’s number one on my list of someone that’s not one of the top, top American women. I think she’s going to make a big run.
Q: I want to get your thoughts on the four-year doping ban of Marketa Vondrousova. There’s been some commentary out there that maybe it a little bit harsh given that she actually didn’t test positive. A lot of mitigating circumstances. Some players get three months, nine months after appeal. What do you think of the penalty?
FERNANDEZ: I’ll be honest, I don’t know enough details about the missed test. If she missed the three tests, it’s harsh consequences.
She’s had such a hard career with injuries, stepping away. She does well, then has to step away. Does well, has to step away. One more thing to add to the difficulties for her.
It’s tough. I’m not sure, again, the details exactly. I think that’s what comes with missing the three tests.
McENROE: Four years is ridiculous. I mean, that’s way too harsh. I mean, two I could see. Even that to me would be harsh. One year, okay, you’re going to get it. But four years, really?
FERNANDEZ: Is she appealing right now?
McENROE: I’m sure she is. Simona Halep appealed and got it reduced. But she lost so much time.
I’m sure she’s appealing it. She should get punished, but four years is way too extreme.
Q: Patrick, who do you see as the favorite on the men’s side to be crowned champion, like Alexander Zverev, Taylor Fritz, Felix Auger-Aliassime could be a dark horse, as well as Francisco Cerundolo, along with Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner. On the women’s side, Serena Williams has gotten a wild card into the singles draw, is playing doubles with her sister. Do you think she can compete for a singles and doubles title? What do you think about a dark horse to make a deep run like Alex Eala, as well as you mentioned Rybakina, Coco Gauff, Jasmine Paolini?
McENROE: There’s no doubt who the favorite is, it’s Sinner. He’s the clear favorite. I would put probably Djokovic at the moment as the second favorite. I thought he played pretty well in Paris, even though he lost early. I thought he played three quality matches. That’s going to give him confidence.
Zverev I would not put as a favorite. I would put Fritz ahead of him. Fritz just beat him in a close match. I would probably put Shelton slightly ahead of him.
Other than that, as favorites go, it’s hard to find. Felix I don’t think I would put as a favorite. He’ll be seeded high, he’s ranked high. I don’t think he’s that comfortable on grass. He’s had some decent results.
It’s Sinner and then it’s everyone else is the bottom line on the women’s side.
The women, there’s more players – I’ll let Mary Joe expound on that. But as I said, Rybakina would be my favorite, although Sabalenka may be the odds maker favorite, I don’t know. I’ve mentioned a couple times Jovic as an outsider.
On the men’s side, someone that could make a run outside, I look at someone like, what’s the guy from Czech Republic, Mary Joe? He beat Fonseca. He lost to Zverev in the semis.
FERNANDEZ: Mensik.
McENROE: Mensik I think could be a heck of a player on grass with the way he serves, his athleticism, hits the ball huge.
FERNANDEZ: I agree with all those. The women is more open. We mentioned a lot of players earlier besides Sabalenka and Rybakina. I think Pegula could do really well. If Madison Keys gets hot, she can do well. Eala hits the ball early, hits the ball flat, moves well. She could be dangerous.
We’ll see. Noskova who won the tournament. Kostyuk played really well the last few months, could do some damage. There’s a lot of possibilities. Even though Rybakina and Sabalenka didn’t win a title going into Wimbledon, I still think you put them ahead of the field.
THE MODERATOR: Patrick and Mary Joe, would you like to share any final thoughts?
FERNANDEZ:I’m very excited. Super excited. I’m excited for Serena, to watch how that storyline unfolds. Think that’s a huge one. I’m going to be following Novak Djokovic on the men’s side. He’s 39. He’s 39 years old, and he’s…
McENROE: He’s a youngster.
FERNANDEZ: He’s a baby compared to Serena. I always question that he doesn’t play enough to be ready. Look, he almost won in Australia. I’m with Patrick that I put him right behind Sinner. He’s so comfortable on the grass. He’s won seven times.
I was reading something crazy, I think he’s been to the semis or better the last seven or eight years. This is for me where he has his best chance to win another major. I’m excited for that storyline to unfold, too.
McENROE: We’re super pumped at ESPN having Andy Roddick and Rece and some other relatively new faces back on the team. That’s going to be great for us. The storylines are huge.
We were all sort of bummed before the French Open, Alcaraz is out, he’s the most electric player in the world, everybody knows. Turned out to be such a fascinating tournament on the men’s side. Haven’t mentioned Fonseca, Jodar, Mensik who we talked about. The young guyskind of stepped up in a way they hadn’t before, at least in a big tournament. I’m looking forward to that.
Obviously Andreeva is another one. She can win Wimbledon. She will win Wimbledon one day. I don’t know if it’s this year. She has an incredible game to watch. I think it’s going to be exciting.
For however many years we’ve been doing Wimbledon at ESPN, there’s nothing like it, nothing like walking out and being part of it. We’re happy to be back for another year.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you Mary Joe and Patrick for taking the time. Thank you, everybody, for joining this call.
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