The mass of curls may have been chopped, the speed of the legs slowed somewhat on the court, but John McEnroe's tongue was in fine working order.
The tennis was not bad either.
McEnroe beat Australian Pat Cash 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 but the 4000-strong crowd in Christchurch got what they expected when
the tennis legend, famous for his temper tantrums in the late 80s, let rip to officials, spectators and even a photographer when unhappy with the state of play.
"That's a horse-shit call," he bellowed at one resolute linesman.
It may have been part of the exhibition in his showdown with fellow former Wimbledon champion Cash, but it was blatantly clear from the aggression on court and standard of play that neither player came here to finish second.
"I didn't come over here to lose. The fire in the belly is still there," McEnroe said of his desire to win.
It has dimmed slightly and it does not stay lit quite as long, but it is definitely something that will never go away completely.
He showed some of his sublime skills with racket in hand, the slicing backhand, overhead smash and soft touches at the net.
Cash got the first break of serve, but McEnroe was the first to break the silence as he challenged the linesman's call on just the third point of the match.
It started slowly with a shaking of the head, to a disagreement with one official, to the hurling of his racket, and exploded with a two-minute interlude with head umpire Tony Glentworth after yet another call was questioned.
Even a photographer felt the wrath of McEnroe.
"I have to sit here and listen to him screw me over. I don't want to see you standing there taking photos of me missing shots," he said.
Cash, who plays on the seniors circuit, which he calls the old farts' tour, was not to be outdone in the verbal slanging match with the officials, and even had time mid-point to talk to the crowd.
"You getting tired yet?" he said to McEnroe after the two had battled through five deuces before Cash finally served out the game.
Cash was also here to entertain.
For the record, McEnroe belted down 11 aces to Cash's seven, Cash blew apart one tennis ball with his serve (and proceeded to show off his muscles), the Australian changed seven karate-kid style headbands and McEnroe kept 11 officials (including Glentworth) on their toes.
The true test came in the second set when first Cash stripped his shirt to cheers and whistles from the crowd followed by a change of shirt and muscle flexing from McEnroe.
Their physiques just may have been the winners on the night.
- NZPA
The mass of curls may have been chopped, the speed of the legs slowed somewhat on the court, but John McEnroe's tongue was in fine working order.
The tennis was not bad either.
McEnroe beat Australian Pat Cash 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 but the 4000-strong crowd in Christchurch got what they expected when
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