Before the pandemic hit, former tennis star Patrick McEnroe and his wife, Tony-nominated Broadway actor Melissa Errico, traveled all over the world while raising three young daughters.
While life has certainly changed, that doesn’t mean they have slowed down.
“I don’t know if we’ve been busier since the pandemic or before,” said McEnroe, now an ESPN commentator. He’s now back to work covering the U.S. Open after catching the coronavirus himself in mid-March, early on in the pandemic.
McEnroe said he was lucky to have a less severe case. Still, he was quarantined in his basement in Westchester County for a month while Errico held down the fort and raised their daughters upstairs, all while taking care of him.
Errico said it was very much back to basics for the family. Her daughter, Diana, compared the ordeal to the book ‘Little Women,’ which they had just begun to read before the pandemic hit.
“We really had to get back to love, family, hard work,” Errico said.
The couple’s oldest daughter, Victoria, is a rising tennis star in her own right, and Diana and her twin sister do ballet. Errico said they had to figure out how to take classes online, installing a ballet bar and clearing out her bedroom for them to practice. She praised instructors for their adaptation and commitment to students.
“It’s been beautiful to see the New York ballet world persist at teaching ballet, and they really never missed a beat,” she said.
Errico had to cancel a world tour, and instead has recorded new music from a home studio. Meanwhile, McEnroe developed a new podcast, Holding Court, during his time in quarantine. In each episode, he speaks to celebrities about their love for tennis.
McEnroe also responded to Novak Djokovic, who was ejected from the U.S. Open after he hit a ball in anger that hit a line judge in the throat.
He commented that it was clearly an accident, but said, “The rule is the rule, you’re responsible for what happens to [your racket].”
He’s no stranger to Grand Slam controversy, as his brother, John McEnroe, was ejected from the 1990 Australian Open and fined $6,500 for incidents including swearing and smashing a racket.
McEnroe also noted that there will be a first-time U.S. Open major champion this year, as both Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer both declined to participate in this year’s tournament.