Boris Becker says 'I don't want to see computers and machines on court' in response to harsher ATP punishments
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ByEurosport
Updated 14/04/2022 at 08:22 GMT
Six-time Grand Slam winner Boris Becker admits he was not always calm and measured on the tennis court when he was on the tour, but he hopes the ATP's promise to impose stricter punishments for players who have on-court outbursts does not result in players hiding their personality when they play matches. Becker says: "I don't want to see computers and machines on the court".
'It needs to stop' - Ruud calls for halt of angry outbursts by players
Boris Becker hopes that men's tennis players do not turn into "computers and machines" after the ATP said it would be handing out stricter punishments for on-court misconduct.
Australia's Nick Kyrgios was fined a total of £45,700 for his angry outbursts at Indian Wells and the Miami Open in March while Alexander Zverev was thrown out of the Mexican Open in February after hitting his umpire's chair with his racquet.
World No. 36 Alexander Bublik says harsher punishments will put players in "cages". while world No. 7 Casper Ruud is in favour of the move and has called for a stop to "reckless behaviour".
Becker says tennis cannot be stripped of all emotion otherwise the sport will risk losing its entertainment factor.
"I'm quite happy that we were allowed to play and ultimately go berserk under the exclusion of the social media and the microphones so to speak," he told Eurosport Germany's tennis podcast.
"It's more difficult for the players today. Everything is extremely transparent, too transparent for my taste. And then the question is how does the tennis authority deal with it?
"Tennis is also an entertainment sport. I don't want to see computers and machines on the court either.
"Emotions are good, a bit of blood, sweat and tears, that stimulates, that was already the case with us. But everything has a limit."
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Watch the shocking moment Zverev attacks umpire’s chair with racquet
Becker believes suspending players from the ATP tour for more than one tournament could do more for altering the behaviour of players on court.
"I know how to chop up rackets or how to treat the referee badly," he said.
"That's why I won't criticise him now. But I was also punished. I wasn't suspended either, but I was punished and then you wake up. And yes, the line is thin. What else do you allow?
"The way [Daniil] Medvedev insulted the referee in Melbourne [at the Australian Open]. That makes John McEnroe almost harmless. Or Nick Kyrgios - the things he does on the court... We in our generation were also bad, but the boys today, they are at least as bad.
"If you forbid a player to play in tournaments, that's the maximum punishment. Where they are guaranteed to wake up is when they are not allowed to play in four or five tournaments."
Becker does not feel a player on the tour should vocally voice their opinion on another professional's outburst in a match.
He added: "What I don't like at all is when other players criticise that. Everyone really has to stay within themselves and look in the mirror.
"We're all not perfect, everyone freaks out sometimes and you just don't do that. I also call the tennis players team-mates, so you really shouldn't comment publicly on other people's misconduct. I think it's wrong.
"The penalties are there, they don't need to be reinvented. The question is what has to happen for a player to really be punished for weeks?"
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