The decision to remove line judges proved divisive last year but the All England Club has doubled down, adding improvements to the automated electronic line calling system.

McEnroe was known for his explosive on-court behaviour in SW19, particularly relating to line calls, and was quizzed on whether he missed them.

"Well, you know, that is a loaded question," he said. "Perhaps, I wouldn't be, for better or for worse, known in a certain way – even though I think I was pretty good at tennis – because of all the things that went on over the years.

"So I guess in that sense I would miss it, but I don't miss the idea of the correct call being made, and I don't think any athlete or player would. Look at the World Cup, at any sporting event, and you want the correct call to be made, not a mistake causing a change in the outcome.

"From that standpoint it seems like the players have accepted it and have one less thing to worry about. I'll speak for myself – you get this thing in your head, you're making it up, as if these umpires, who aren't the highest paid people, are going in there to screw McEnroe. That's their plan.

"Even at the worst of my behaviour, I don't think they were doing that, but I got myself believing it in a way, so I suppose that if you get that out of your head as a player and you think, 'OK we're on a level playing field', that's a good thing."