John McEnroe was unimpressed by both Iga Swiatek and Amanda Anisimova’s pre-match routine before the 2025 Wimbledon women’s final as he believes the act should be banned.
Both finalists emerged from the locker room listening to music with Swiatek wearing big headphones while Anisimova had the smaller Airpods, but the latter removed her earphones moments before she stepped onto Centre Court as she opted to soak in the atmosphere.
But her rival continued to block out the sounds from the crowd and only removed her electronic device at the last minute.
Seven-time Grand Slam winner McEnroe believes players should not be allowed to wear headphones during these big occasions.
“They [the All England Club] shouldn’t allow them to wear AirPods or headphones,” the former world No 1 said on BBC.
“You have got to get them to enjoy this [atmosphere] instead of playing some music. Come on now, ladies.”
Swiatek might point out that by listening to music, she was able to keep focused on the task at hand as she was quick out of the blocks in the final, breaking in the opening game before running away with the match.
Anisimova, on the other hand, appeared to be overwhelmed by the occasion as she never got going as Swiatek became only the second woman to win a Grand Slam final 6-0, 6-0 following Steffi Graf’s success.
The American stated in the post-match press conference: “From my side, I think I was a bit frozen there with my nerves. There’s a lot of room for improvement. If anything, I think it’s more experience for me on how to handle nerves.
“It’s my first Slam final, so at least I have that experience now.”
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McEnroe, meanwhile, admits the performances of both finalists took many by surprise, saying: “Everyone is in a state of shock at what just transpired.
“I’ve got to hand it to Swiatek because nobody saw this coming, nobody saw Swiatek being this good on this surface after the struggles she’s had.
“She played fantastic, it was a fantastic hour against someone who absolutely froze which is really, really hard to watch and I feel terrible for Anisimova. But well deserved for Iga.”
Two-time US Open winner Tracy Austin was also on commentary duty during the final, and she is confident the 23-year-old Anisimova will bounce back after the disappointing final.
“Having her people around – her mum, sister and nephew are in town – will help,” the American told BBC Sport.
“She might be able to quickly realise that it is her first major final against a former world number one who was 5-0 in major finals.
“This was a lot for Amanda to take on. Wimbledon adds another 25-30% of pressure because it is Wimbledon.”