The clay court season is over; grass courts are next. This shift brings new challenges and another major title: Wimbledon 2025. Everyone’s excited, including Chris Evert. Her commentary is known for its insight, drawing on her legendary career. Having won seven French Open titles, surely she knew her way around the Parisian court back in the day. Although she just finished a rocky commentary role at Roland Garros, a bigger stage awaits.

On June 13, Patrick McEnroe, who was also part of the commentators box at Roland Garros dropped a tweet filled with excitement. He wrote, “An absolute blast covering this years @rolandgarros with the @tntsports team!!! Now can’t wait to be back @Wimbledon with my @espn tennis family.” He has been a commentator since 1995, usually alongside his brother – John. But he’s not the only one excited.

Christ Evert reposted the tweet matching his joy, writing, “Me neither @PatrickMcEnroe !!! ❤️❤️❤️” The two were present at last year’s Wimbledon as presenters as well, and this time at the French Open too. However, when the job revolves around giving your subjective opinions, with it comes with backlash.

Having played her part during her years as a competitor and bringing exciting rivalry to the court alongside Martina Navratilova, Evert is certainly no stranger to discussions about rivalries. But this time, it was towards Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner as the two clashed in the Grand Slam final on June 7.

Later when Alcaraz edged out Sinner in a nail-biting five-set thriller, Chris Evert stirred the pot with a simple yet bold suggestion. On June 8, she took to her X page and wrote, “GIVE THE TROPHY TO BOTH OF THEM….” The post quickly caught fire, racking up nearly half a million views as fans buzzed over her call for shared glory.

But not everyone was on board with Evert’s idea. While Alcaraz and Sinner battled fiercely and were evenly matched on the court, Alcaraz ultimately clinched the win by dominating the final tiebreaker. Some fans felt the trophy rightly belonged to the Spaniard, sparking a lively debate about whether sharing the prize would honor the spirit of competition or dilute the triumph. Either way, the conversation added an extra layer of drama to an unforgettable French Open finale.

But that’s not all. Chris Evert also came under fire for her comments during Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka’s match before that. Albeit this time it wasn’t for something she said on social media, but during the match. According to some fans, her repetitive remarks throughout the match were considered “disruptive.” Interestingly, she wasn’t alone with that backlash during this tournament as fans had previously also called out John McEnroe for the same thing.

Will things be different during Wimbledon this time around? Only time will tell. Although she won’t be a stranger to it as she’s faced backlash in last year’s grass court major as well!

Chris Evert received criticism for her commentary at the 2024 Wimbledon

On July 7, 2024, during the round of 16 match between Jasmine Paolini and Madison Keys, Chris Evert stumbled by calling Paolini “Paolina” at least three times. Fans didn’t hold back, flooding social media platform X with frustrated posts about the blunder. With Evert now a seasoned commentator, this slip left many annoyed during the women’s singles final coverage.

Evert isn’t the only commentator who’s struggled with player names. John McEnroe, for example, has a reputation for mispronouncing names like Daniil Medvedev, often saying “MED-veh-dev” instead of the correct “med-VYAY-dev.” He’s also called Stefanos Tsitsipas “Sissypas” and was called out at the 2024 French Open for bungling Alexander Zverev’s name. It seems even legends can trip over tricky tennis names.

Other players’ names often cause confusion too. Elena Rybakina’s surname is frequently heard as “Rabyekana” or “Rabaykana” rather than the correct “ree-BAY-kee-nah.” Iga Świątek’s Polish name is another challenge, with many mispronunciations floating around instead of the proper “shvee-YON-tek.” These little slips highlight just how diverse and global tennis has become.

With Wimbledon just weeks away, fans are hoping for smoother commentary this year. Will Chris Evert dodge the drama this time? Share your thoughts in the comments below!