Tennis: McEnroe's 'toilet paper' volley at umpire

JOHN MCENROE was in familiar territory yesterday - winning a tournament and then having to defend himself after bursts of offensive behaviour.

The 39-year-old American beat the Frenchman Henri Leconte 6-4, 6-2 in the Sydney ATP Senior Tour final, but the result of a barely serious event for past-their-peak former greats was incidental.

It was McEnroe's behaviour in defeating the Swede Mikael Pernfors 7-6, 6-3 in the semi-final that drew attention.

During the match, McEnroe, known in his younger days as "Super Brat" and "Mac the Mouth", argued about a call with the Australian umpire Wayne McKewen and told the official to "get some toilet paper and clean that shit out of your mouth".

Pernfors also got a verbal volley when McEnroe, whose "you cannot be serious" rant once shook Wimbledon to its foundations, appeared to be frustrated by an incident in the second set. "What do you want, a handwritten invitation to the final?" he yelled at his opponent after he had questioned a line call.

McEnroe, who is known to play to the gallery in Senior events much like the baddie in a pantomime, did not feel he had overstepped the mark. "It's exactly what people want," the tour's No 1-ranked player said, "but then they get mad at me. That was nothing compared to what I am capable of. If I break the rules and someone has the balls to bust me then let them."