TENNIS AUSTRALIAN OPEN : Players Are Placing Blame on McEnroe

John McEnroe, the first player kicked out of the Australian Open for misconduct in its 85-year history, flew home to Los Angeles Monday.

McEnroe brushed silently past reporters at the airport and left with his wife, actress Tatum O’Neal, their two sons and his agent.

McEnroe threw his racket and a tantrum Sunday while leading his fourth-round match against Mikael Pernfors and was defaulted by the umpire.

The action, which led to $6,500 in fines against McEnroe, made him the first player ejected for misconduct in any Grand Slam since pros and amateurs began playing together at the start of the open era in 1968.

Two other players have been defaulted for bad behavior.

Colombian-born Spaniard Willie Alvarez was defaulted from the French championships in 1963 and American Earl Cochell was ousted from the U.S. championships in the 1950s after a prematch altercation with officials.

Third-seeded Stefan Edberg said McEnroe “only has himself to blame” for getting thrown out, but said his departure is “sad for the tournament.”

“I think he’s done worse things than he did yesterday,” Edberg said. “He’s got a bad temper and he can’t seem to do anything about it. Tennis has always had its characters. But the game needs players like John.”

Fellow American Aaron Krickstein, the fifth-seeded player who lost to David Wheaton today (Monday), said “some of the guys in the locker room said they were glad” McEnroe was thrown out.

McEnroe let himself get rattled by missed shots, close calls and a baby’s cries, and after his default, with a 6-1, 4-6, 7-5, 2-4 lead, he admitted, “I don’t really have anyone to blame but myself.”

McEnroe had been in Australia for three weeks with his family and seemed relaxed and fit.

Yet all it took for McEnroe to revert to his old ways was a tough match against Pernfors, the Swedish-born two-time NCAA champion at Georgia.

At one point in his match with Pernfors, McEnroe stood in front of a lineswoman he thought made a bad call.

Bouncing a ball on his racket and glaring at her in intimidating fashion, McEnroe was hit with a code violation for unsportsmanlike conduct by umpire Gerry Armstrong.

He seemed to be in control of the match and himself again, but suddenly became distracted by a crying baby while serving the sixth game, with Pernfors ahead, 3-2.

“Give him a drink, the boy’s hungry,” McEnroe yelled, looking up in the section of the stands where the baby was crying.

Armstrong asked the parents to take the baby out of the stadium, and after the mother and baby left, a fan yelled, “Can we breathe, John?”

After his disqualification was announced, McEnroe simply packed his rackets and left.

“It’s appalling,” said Mal Tuohey, one of the 15,000 screaming fans. “He’ll never come back to Melbourne again, and I don’t blame him.”