"You cannot be serious": Serena Williams' ex-coach sends strongly-worded message to defend Carlos Alcaraz amid John McEnroe's bold Jannik Sinner claim

Serena Williams’ former coach, Rick Macci, has come to Carlos Alcaraz’s defense after John McEnroe made some bold remarks about him and Jannik Sinner following their Wimbledon final. Macci expressed disbelief over McEnroe’s comments, questioning how someone with his experience could say such a thing.

Sinner and Alcaraz delivered yet another thrilling showdown in the Wimbledon final on July 13, with the Italian gaining revenge for his French Open defeat. This victory marked Sinner’s first-ever title at the All England Club.

Following their encounter, McEnroe said that Alcaraz and Sinner are undoubtedly the two best players in the world right now. He added that when it comes to Sinner, the only player capable of beating him at the moment is Alcaraz, and unless Alcaraz shows up with his absolute best, Sinner will continue to come out on top.

“When Sinner brings his A game, there’s no one that can beat him – other than Alcaraz. On the other hand, if Alcaraz doesn’t bring his A game, Sinner will win every time. So it’s going to be extremely interesting," the American said on BBC.

Macci, who coached the legendary Williams sisters during their early years, took to X (formerly Twitter) to respond to John McEnroe’s comments. Quoting McEnroe’s iconic phrase: "You cannot be serious,” he wrote:

"The great John Mac says Sinner at a different level than Alcaraz and he probably will not win again. You cannot be serious! There is an invisible fine line between these two and it will come down to key moments that day who will have the final say."

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John McEnroe claims Carlos Alcaraz & Jannik Sinner could beat prime Rafael Nadal

Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner pictured at the 2025 Wimbledon Championships | Image Source: Getty

John McEnroe stirred controversy once again just after it was confirmed that Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner would meet in the French Open final a month ago. The American suggested that, in their current form, both players might have been capable of beating Rafael Nadal at his absolute "best."

McEnroe said on TNT Sports:

"You would make a serious argument with both guys that they would be favoured to beat Nadal, at his best." "Do I think they're gonna reach 20, 24 [titles], either one of them? No, because that plateau is so hard. But these two guys right now, it's like when you watch the NBA and you say nobody could be better than Michael Jordan. But these two guys right now, it's like when you watch the NBA and you say nobody could be better than Michael Jordan," he added.

John McEnroe's comments eventually reached Nadal, but the Spaniard made it clear that he wasn’t bothered. He said he had no issues if Alcaraz went on to win more Grand Slams or achieve more than him.

Edited by Pritha Ghosh