Wonderful video. Mac was pretty calm during this match (relatively speaking!). Also, the role of placement was so key then, much more than it is now. One might wonder why Borg didn't blow Mac away at the net. The equipment didn't allow for this, so he tried to place the ball instead.
borg said that physically he was ok in general, but at wimb 81 was 1st time his feared losing, also he said he just lost motivation and if he couldnt give 100% then he didnt want to play, so he didnt, he retired, his last tournament was monte carlo in spring of 1982.
so mcenroe went shit after 85 because of tatum o neal, maybe he should have let her carry on acting and not row with her to stop because he thort a woman should stay at home.
love watching this, this is tennis. The anything goes approach to racquet technology has turned modern tennis into ping pong on steroids, can't stand it , neither can anyone else. When are they going to wake up and start playing with wooden racquets and start playing some tennis again ?
@byen8 Ping pong on steroids. I like that. Perfectly put. We don't have tennis anymore, just big brutes with their StarWars tennis racquets who just blast the ball back and forth at eachother until the it either goes into the bottom of the net, or flies out of the stadium. That's how you know someone won the point. If not wood, then racquets should be strictly regulated as to size and composition.
Dommage qu'à la fin de sa carrière gagner un titre du grand chelem ,surtout l'US OPEN soit devenu une quasi obsession pour B Borg au détriment du plaisir du jeu .Il se rajoutait une pression supplémentaire ,jouait crispé ,court etc
Par contraste quelle fraicheur dans le tennis pratiqué lors du tournoi AKAI 82 ou le MASTERS 79
Borg apparently left the game because he did not want to stay in tennis as an also ran to Mcenroe. He dropped down to number 2 and wasn't content with it.
Borg was so frustrated by this defeat he did not stay for the trophy presentation. He later apologized to Mcenroe for leaving. As noted above, Borg never played another major.
Remember that the Open was on grass until 1974. Given Borg's dominance on grass, he likely would have won several Opens if it had not changed surfaces (artificial clay for two years, then to hardcourt).
@yahwhous you do realise that Borg won 6 French opens (clay) and in 77 when Vilas won, apparently Borg didn't play that year! If the Australian open wasn't changed from grass to a slow hard court, or if Wimbledon as it is today (slowed down/higher bounce/balls slower etc) Nadal would probably have less titles as well!
@absolutebore I'm not sure what your comment has to do with mine. I didn't even mention Nadal--I talked about Borg winning more majors if the US Open had remained a grass court tournament. (Borg probably would also have won more US Opens if it had stayed on clay, but that was only for two years and was never popular with US fans.)
from wik :"Borg failed to win the US Open in 10 tries, losing four finals, 1976 and 1978 to Jimmy Connors, and 1980 and 1981 to McEnroe."
both were left handed players. it's well known in tennis, that playing left handed gives you an edge. even toni knew that. kinda sad and doesn't make the sport more interesting but is a predictable unfair advantage. meh...
@dud321xyz i would give an arm or a leg to be able to watch something like that live. think of the point constructs. geez. that would be ridiculous brilliance. man.....now i wish i could really see that!
@fewpeople i would like to see Nadal playing on a Wimbledon court pre 2000. (much faster) His looping forehand would struggle in my opinion. It's a shame that tennis has become one dimensional and the tour is all about slow courts outside of the US tour mainly. Even Australian courts are relatively slower hard courts to pander to the Spanish and Sth Americans who dominate the tour nowadays.
And The Great Borg walked off the court before the awards ceremony, rode off into the sunset, and never played another slam. It's intriguing to say the least, as to just how much history changed after this match. Borg had 11 slams by the age of 25, more than Sampras or Federer at that age. He only played Australia once, where he would have most likely won at least 3 or 4 of those, beings it was on grass during his Wimbledon reign. An argument could be made for Borg being the GOAT.
that was some bullshit exhibition that doesnt count in their official record (7-7)
borg was the only one smart to ditch the sport b4 his record got destroyed against the #1 player of the time (connors didnt against mac, and mac didnt against lendl)
I disagree with you. I don;t think Borg's record would have been destroyed if he stayed around. I think he would have tried to get better and improve upon his game to beat McEnroe. He did try to come back a few years later using his old wood racket and his old game in the modern era but that did not work out. If he did not walk away from the game after 1981, I think he would have still been a great force and could have won more grand slams. He left the game at 26 and he should have never left.
well he better have improved A LOT to stay competitive b/c mac (as well as lendl) only got better - maybe borg would've won a GS, perhaps 2, but not more
i wish borg stayed around so mac could've stayed focused and continued to improve after '84 (not to mention losing 2 yrs--'82/'83-- from being mentally out of it as a result of borg's ditching the game) - instead he only had a 1/2 career (much like borg but for mostly diff reasons)
Very good point. Mac was never the same after 1984. He got to the 1985 US Open final and that was it as far as him being a major force anymore. He was done.
@TheTopspin77 If you look at the timing of when Mac dropped off, it was during his time with Tatum O' Neal. Can't be at your best with the distraction of a bipolar woman. (Most all women are bipolar, but they don't admit it since it's so common). Had Mac not been distracted, he might have been the greatest player of all time. He was definitely one of the 3 most gifted. (Federer, Agassi, Mac, Laver, Ellsworth Vines come to mind when I think of the pure talent; pure grace).
McEnroe goes on adn on about his rivalry with Borg and how he missed him when Borg suddenly retired but his attitude at the net when they shake hands here reeked of arrogance and disrespect. he doesnt even look at Borg. McEnroe only won 6 Grand slams didnt he? Definately NOT one of the all time greats sorry
McEnroe won 4 US Opens (79,80,81 and 84) and 3 Wimbledon single titles (81,83 and 84) as well as many doubles grand slam titles. If you think he is not one of the all time greats than I am afraid you are mistaken.
I agree with you 100%. Federer would do great with a wooden racket, but Nadal would suffer without a graphite, 100 square inch, polyester string, super light racket. Don't get me wrong, I like Nadal, but he would suffer with an old wood racket.
There is no more net-rusher like McEnroe these days. With the advent of racquet technology, a tennis pro can hit a passing shot with a lot of pace at shape angle beyond what a net-rusher can possibly react. A pure net-rusher is a sitting duck at the net. Since there is no net-rusher, there is no baseline defender like Borg. Everyone becomes some sort of an all-court player.
I don't agree, Remember a serve and volleyer can hit the ball just as hard to prepare to get a Volley win. If they hit the ball just as hard with the new rackets and speed, the Baselines won't be able to react and the volleyer would be able to get the volley.
Right now, no one thinks a Serve and volleyer can make it. But they can. Pete Sampras did great and he had a close match when he and Roger Federer played. And he played with his original racket to keep it close.
that was a show matchan on a superfast surface. Sampras wouldn`t get near the top ranks if he was still active. Before he won usopen in 2002, he didnt win a tournament for like 20 month, you think hes that much better now with little training and 7 years older? grow up
This match pretty much sums up why Mac won 3 of 4 meetings against Borg in Slams and the one he lost was 8-6 in the fifth.
Mac attacked the net and put constant pressure on Borg and I don't think Bjorn liked that fast pace. That's why I think Connors and Vilas had trouble with Borg because they couldn't get him out of his comfort zone.
With Borg and Mac, it's hard to say. It might be a bit more complicated than that. It was clear in '81 that Mac was hungrier than Borg. Also, Borg should have put the '80 Wimbledon away in the fourth set with all those match points, but he choked them away.
You could say that, but at the same time I think it's important to point out that Mac appeared to peak when Borg was burning out. So while Mac's game did trouble Borg more than other players, the 1-3 grand slam record against Mac wasn't completely representative of the matchup. Besides their combined record was an even 7-7 and 7-4 for Borg before 1981.
mac did NOT peak while he played borg, he didnt peak until 1984 (and most likely could've gotten better had his main rival hadnt "booked up early" and ditched the sport to avoid getting blasted more... borg could see the writing on the wall)
mac was just a pup in '80, hence your 7-7 vs. 7-4 point is weak - also, borg was only in his mid-20's so to say he was burning out (like some1 pushing 30) is not very convincing (although there seems to be some borg fans who agree w/ u w/ the thumbs up)
You make very good points, but keep in mind that Mac also had a poor year, for his standards, in 1982 - when Borg was on a hiatus. We can talk back and forth about Mac's peak (and I'm fine with saying that it was in 1984, although I can make the argument that the game was less competitive that year), however I believe that mac's prime began at least in 1979. Prime being a more extended period of excellence.
it's well known that mac lost motivation from borg's absence in 1982 (which spilled into 1983)
by 1984 he had regained his focus and that combined w/ a weak field led to his domination - even if there were stiffer competition, however, i doubt he would've lost wimbledon/US Open in his gr8 form
of course one would have to say that mac's prime in the extended sense would have to be the years pre-1985 (and one would not included the years pre-1979, as he was still a kid in high school!)
That doesn't sound like "common knowledge" to me. That's pure speculation. McEnroe was so sad that Borg was gone that he stopped playing well? Don't buy it. Especially considering that Borg's absence was supposed to be temporary. He didn't retire until early in 1983. Then Mac started to play well.
I think burnout has more to do with length of playing time than age. Borg was pulled out of school and had been playing non-stop tennis from the age of 14, so a burnout at 25 seems very possible. As CRAZY as this sounds, I felt burned out from baseball when I was only 13 after after playing every year since I was 5.
u're stretching if u think borg ditched the game b/c he burned out - i would have even less respect for him than i do already if that's true - what other gr8 player burned out and left the game for good? sampras, lendl, federer, nadal? they ALL quit school early to play tennis
borg's so-called return to the game later on was a joke - he prob only did it for the $ cuz he was bankrupt b/c of drugs and had a failed marriage b/c he cheated - i was rooting for him though so i could watch him live
Sampras waited until he finished high school at around 18 before becoming pro. Borg, at 14, didn't even finish Jr. High before devoting himself full-time to tennis.
Lendl and Federer took too long to win grand slams--both at least 22 yrs old, while Borg was only 18 when his hot streak began burning. Nadal has hardly even been playing so he's years away from a possible burnout, not to mention his injuries will prevent him from burnout.
Absolutely, Borg's return was a joke--he admits it.
Borg was burning out in 1981 but it didn't disturb him in winning the French Open for the sixth time?
The Swede's career is in so many ways similar to Nadal's.They were both super fast in their prime, several FO Champions, played with huge amount of top spin. They have so lot in common that if hypothetically Borg was 25 years younger and played now he'd play nearly exactly as Nadal
On the other side of the net there's either Mcenroe or Federer-a gracefull and classy player with great technique
History likes repetitions - the Mcenroe/Borg rivalry in the late 70s and 80s and Fed/Rafa now.
Borg was indeed pretty much burned out in 1981, or should I say has been burning out steadily until he lost to Mcenroe in the SW19 final and then boom. Borg was out from tennis at the age of 25. Talking bout history making its mark again - look where Nadal is now and he's barely 23 years old.
Funny thing that Mcenroe and Borg never played on clay...
you got a point there but you also have to realize that Borg in 1981 was closer to his peak than McEnroe was to his, we all remember what McEnroe was doing in 1984 to the field
@89Pleasek Players don't always have just one 'peak'. Besides, what to say of the 1985 McEnroe who was so close to his '84 peak? Mac was already a seasoned player in 1981 - he won his first major in 1979.
Wonderful video. Mac was pretty calm during this match (relatively speaking!). Also, the role of placement was so key then, much more than it is now. One might wonder why Borg didn't blow Mac away at the net. The equipment didn't allow for this, so he tried to place the ball instead.
edbruby 4 months ago
borg said that physically he was ok in general, but at wimb 81 was 1st time his feared losing, also he said he just lost motivation and if he couldnt give 100% then he didnt want to play, so he didnt, he retired, his last tournament was monte carlo in spring of 1982.
peterpeterxxo 5 months ago
lendl age 24 winning 1st major, federer age 21.
peterpeterxxo 5 months ago
so mcenroe went shit after 85 because of tatum o neal, maybe he should have let her carry on acting and not row with her to stop because he thort a woman should stay at home.
peterpeterxxo 5 months ago
love watching this, this is tennis. The anything goes approach to racquet technology has turned modern tennis into ping pong on steroids, can't stand it , neither can anyone else. When are they going to wake up and start playing with wooden racquets and start playing some tennis again ?
byen8 6 months ago
@byen8 Ping pong on steroids. I like that. Perfectly put. We don't have tennis anymore, just big brutes with their StarWars tennis racquets who just blast the ball back and forth at eachother until the it either goes into the bottom of the net, or flies out of the stadium. That's how you know someone won the point. If not wood, then racquets should be strictly regulated as to size and composition.
assindiastignani 2 months ago
@assindiastignani Thankyou sir.
byen8 2 months ago
Mcenroe and Navratilova, the Greatest!!
sosdkny 6 months ago
Dommage qu'à la fin de sa carrière gagner un titre du grand chelem ,surtout l'US OPEN soit devenu une quasi obsession pour B Borg au détriment du plaisir du jeu .Il se rajoutait une pression supplémentaire ,jouait crispé ,court etc
Par contraste quelle fraicheur dans le tennis pratiqué lors du tournoi AKAI 82 ou le MASTERS 79
cedre93 6 months ago
woah if borg played like this then he wudnt stand a chance against federer...............
tetelung 7 months ago
@tetelung I´m sure Roger thinks differently...
vierdiez 6 months ago
"YOU CAN NOT BE SERIOUS!"
PatrickSmithPhD 7 months ago
Borg apparently left the game because he did not want to stay in tennis as an also ran to Mcenroe. He dropped down to number 2 and wasn't content with it.
nowbellhere 8 months ago
borg number one for ever!!!
andro43 8 months ago
Perchè la telecronaca è in italiano?
Makenor13 8 months ago
Borg was so frustrated by this defeat he did not stay for the trophy presentation. He later apologized to Mcenroe for leaving. As noted above, Borg never played another major.
Remember that the Open was on grass until 1974. Given Borg's dominance on grass, he likely would have won several Opens if it had not changed surfaces (artificial clay for two years, then to hardcourt).
yahwhous 8 months ago
@yahwhous you do realise that Borg won 6 French opens (clay) and in 77 when Vilas won, apparently Borg didn't play that year! If the Australian open wasn't changed from grass to a slow hard court, or if Wimbledon as it is today (slowed down/higher bounce/balls slower etc) Nadal would probably have less titles as well!
absolutebore 8 months ago
@absolutebore I'm not sure what your comment has to do with mine. I didn't even mention Nadal--I talked about Borg winning more majors if the US Open had remained a grass court tournament. (Borg probably would also have won more US Opens if it had stayed on clay, but that was only for two years and was never popular with US fans.)
yahwhous 8 months ago
from wik :"Borg failed to win the US Open in 10 tries, losing four finals, 1976 and 1978 to Jimmy Connors, and 1980 and 1981 to McEnroe."
both were left handed players. it's well known in tennis, that playing left handed gives you an edge. even toni knew that. kinda sad and doesn't make the sport more interesting but is a predictable unfair advantage. meh...
ultraverydeepfield 8 months ago
The serve and volley thing is really boring. Its best to see when the player is playing fr.o.m. The baseline.
And his behaving is really good here, is it true that he respected borg very much?
TheKPRZ 9 months ago
@dud321xyz What kind of racket would they play with?
b735player 10 months ago
McEnroe was always relatively well behaved when he played Borg, the one player he seemed to respect.
bailinnumberguy 11 months ago
@bailinnumberguy it was his ritual not to ever be "Mcenroe-like" when he played Borg
TheRoserver 9 months ago
Mcenroes revenge
fede7aq 1 year ago
@dud321xyz i would give an arm or a leg to be able to watch something like that live. think of the point constructs. geez. that would be ridiculous brilliance. man.....now i wish i could really see that!
fierte 1 year ago
Mac peeked about 2 or 3 years after this match.
nowbellhere 1 year ago
he doesn't look quite happy after winning hehe
musicadeloslocos 1 year ago
mac's volley placements were so controlled and beautiful!
golfmaniac007 1 year ago 2
Borg-Connors-Lendl-Mc Enroe the FANTASTIC 4 in the most fabulous era ever in tennis.How much I miss them¡¡¡
kiki82018 1 year ago 2
Borg did some amazing things with a wooden racquet.
MrSuperguy1000 1 year ago
I always imagine what what would happen, if you had a time machine and sent Nadal (with his current racquet) into this era.
fewpeople 1 year ago
@fewpeople I'd like to see what would happen if today's US army, with all of their weapons, fought the Roman Legion.
ChuffDaddy 1 year ago
@ChuffDaddy That would be pretty sweet, I want to see that too
fewpeople 1 year ago
@fewpeople i would like to see Nadal playing on a Wimbledon court pre 2000. (much faster) His looping forehand would struggle in my opinion. It's a shame that tennis has become one dimensional and the tour is all about slow courts outside of the US tour mainly. Even Australian courts are relatively slower hard courts to pander to the Spanish and Sth Americans who dominate the tour nowadays.
absolutebore 8 months ago
And The Great Borg walked off the court before the awards ceremony, rode off into the sunset, and never played another slam. It's intriguing to say the least, as to just how much history changed after this match. Borg had 11 slams by the age of 25, more than Sampras or Federer at that age. He only played Australia once, where he would have most likely won at least 3 or 4 of those, beings it was on grass during his Wimbledon reign. An argument could be made for Borg being the GOAT.
theatlantean2 1 year ago
They played after this and Borg got him good in 4. I just watched it, it was Nov. 1982 Mac still had the wooden racket it was his Maxply.
KingCast65 2 years ago
that was some bullshit exhibition that doesnt count in their official record (7-7)
borg was the only one smart to ditch the sport b4 his record got destroyed against the #1 player of the time (connors didnt against mac, and mac didnt against lendl)
mephatboi 2 years ago
True. Edberg also booked up early.
KingCast65 2 years ago
I disagree with you. I don;t think Borg's record would have been destroyed if he stayed around. I think he would have tried to get better and improve upon his game to beat McEnroe. He did try to come back a few years later using his old wood racket and his old game in the modern era but that did not work out. If he did not walk away from the game after 1981, I think he would have still been a great force and could have won more grand slams. He left the game at 26 and he should have never left.
TheTopspin77 2 years ago
well he better have improved A LOT to stay competitive b/c mac (as well as lendl) only got better - maybe borg would've won a GS, perhaps 2, but not more
i wish borg stayed around so mac could've stayed focused and continued to improve after '84 (not to mention losing 2 yrs--'82/'83-- from being mentally out of it as a result of borg's ditching the game) - instead he only had a 1/2 career (much like borg but for mostly diff reasons)
mephatboi 2 years ago
Very good point. Mac was never the same after 1984. He got to the 1985 US Open final and that was it as far as him being a major force anymore. He was done.
TheTopspin77 2 years ago
@TheTopspin77 If you look at the timing of when Mac dropped off, it was during his time with Tatum O' Neal. Can't be at your best with the distraction of a bipolar woman. (Most all women are bipolar, but they don't admit it since it's so common). Had Mac not been distracted, he might have been the greatest player of all time. He was definitely one of the 3 most gifted. (Federer, Agassi, Mac, Laver, Ellsworth Vines come to mind when I think of the pure talent; pure grace).
theatlantean2 1 year ago
McEnroe goes on adn on about his rivalry with Borg and how he missed him when Borg suddenly retired but his attitude at the net when they shake hands here reeked of arrogance and disrespect. he doesnt even look at Borg. McEnroe only won 6 Grand slams didnt he? Definately NOT one of the all time greats sorry
kangaroosbraun 2 years ago
You fail to understand what a unbelieveable doubles player JM was...
THE GREATEST DOUBLES PLAYER OF ALL TIME.
LDis1 2 years ago
McEnroe won 4 US Opens (79,80,81 and 84) and 3 Wimbledon single titles (81,83 and 84) as well as many doubles grand slam titles. If you think he is not one of the all time greats than I am afraid you are mistaken.
TheTopspin77 2 years ago 2
maybe they should reintroduce the wood racket! that would be bad news for a lot of todays players. i think federer could deal with that but nadal???
rexkommher 2 years ago
I agree with you 100%. Federer would do great with a wooden racket, but Nadal would suffer without a graphite, 100 square inch, polyester string, super light racket. Don't get me wrong, I like Nadal, but he would suffer with an old wood racket.
TheTopspin77 2 years ago
There is no more net-rusher like McEnroe these days. With the advent of racquet technology, a tennis pro can hit a passing shot with a lot of pace at shape angle beyond what a net-rusher can possibly react. A pure net-rusher is a sitting duck at the net. Since there is no net-rusher, there is no baseline defender like Borg. Everyone becomes some sort of an all-court player.
tyoungos 2 years ago
RF
I don't agree, Remember a serve and volleyer can hit the ball just as hard to prepare to get a Volley win. If they hit the ball just as hard with the new rackets and speed, the Baselines won't be able to react and the volleyer would be able to get the volley.
Right now, no one thinks a Serve and volleyer can make it. But they can. Pete Sampras did great and he had a close match when he and Roger Federer played. And he played with his original racket to keep it close.
RF P
JimAsian1 2 years ago
that was a show matchan on a superfast surface. Sampras wouldn`t get near the top ranks if he was still active. Before he won usopen in 2002, he didnt win a tournament for like 20 month, you think hes that much better now with little training and 7 years older? grow up
borninJune1922 2 years ago
I'm not even a tennis fan but remember watching this match intensely. This was the golden age of tennis.
stuckinboston 2 years ago 2
McEnroe - pure genius at the net..not another one like him since.
sunni72703 2 years ago
Indeeed. Greatest Serve and Vollyer of all time.
LDis1 2 years ago
This match pretty much sums up why Mac won 3 of 4 meetings against Borg in Slams and the one he lost was 8-6 in the fifth.
Mac attacked the net and put constant pressure on Borg and I don't think Bjorn liked that fast pace. That's why I think Connors and Vilas had trouble with Borg because they couldn't get him out of his comfort zone.
stell29 2 years ago 2
With Borg and Mac, it's hard to say. It might be a bit more complicated than that. It was clear in '81 that Mac was hungrier than Borg. Also, Borg should have put the '80 Wimbledon away in the fourth set with all those match points, but he choked them away.
rtghffdfdg 2 years ago
You could say that, but at the same time I think it's important to point out that Mac appeared to peak when Borg was burning out. So while Mac's game did trouble Borg more than other players, the 1-3 grand slam record against Mac wasn't completely representative of the matchup. Besides their combined record was an even 7-7 and 7-4 for Borg before 1981.
chapaev36 2 years ago 6
very good points you make.
ZebZachary 2 years ago
mac did NOT peak while he played borg, he didnt peak until 1984 (and most likely could've gotten better had his main rival hadnt "booked up early" and ditched the sport to avoid getting blasted more... borg could see the writing on the wall)
mac was just a pup in '80, hence your 7-7 vs. 7-4 point is weak - also, borg was only in his mid-20's so to say he was burning out (like some1 pushing 30) is not very convincing (although there seems to be some borg fans who agree w/ u w/ the thumbs up)
mephatboi 2 years ago
You make very good points, but keep in mind that Mac also had a poor year, for his standards, in 1982 - when Borg was on a hiatus. We can talk back and forth about Mac's peak (and I'm fine with saying that it was in 1984, although I can make the argument that the game was less competitive that year), however I believe that mac's prime began at least in 1979. Prime being a more extended period of excellence.
chapaev36 2 years ago
it's well known that mac lost motivation from borg's absence in 1982 (which spilled into 1983)
by 1984 he had regained his focus and that combined w/ a weak field led to his domination - even if there were stiffer competition, however, i doubt he would've lost wimbledon/US Open in his gr8 form
of course one would have to say that mac's prime in the extended sense would have to be the years pre-1985 (and one would not included the years pre-1979, as he was still a kid in high school!)
mephatboi 2 years ago
That doesn't sound like "common knowledge" to me. That's pure speculation. McEnroe was so sad that Borg was gone that he stopped playing well? Don't buy it. Especially considering that Borg's absence was supposed to be temporary. He didn't retire until early in 1983. Then Mac started to play well.
chapaev36 2 years ago
I think burnout has more to do with length of playing time than age. Borg was pulled out of school and had been playing non-stop tennis from the age of 14, so a burnout at 25 seems very possible. As CRAZY as this sounds, I felt burned out from baseball when I was only 13 after after playing every year since I was 5.
rtghffdfdg 2 years ago
u're stretching if u think borg ditched the game b/c he burned out - i would have even less respect for him than i do already if that's true - what other gr8 player burned out and left the game for good? sampras, lendl, federer, nadal? they ALL quit school early to play tennis
borg's so-called return to the game later on was a joke - he prob only did it for the $ cuz he was bankrupt b/c of drugs and had a failed marriage b/c he cheated - i was rooting for him though so i could watch him live
mephatboi 2 years ago
Sampras waited until he finished high school at around 18 before becoming pro. Borg, at 14, didn't even finish Jr. High before devoting himself full-time to tennis.
Lendl and Federer took too long to win grand slams--both at least 22 yrs old, while Borg was only 18 when his hot streak began burning. Nadal has hardly even been playing so he's years away from a possible burnout, not to mention his injuries will prevent him from burnout.
Absolutely, Borg's return was a joke--he admits it.
rtghffdfdg 2 years ago
Borg was burning out in 1981 but it didn't disturb him in winning the French Open for the sixth time?
The Swede's career is in so many ways similar to Nadal's.They were both super fast in their prime, several FO Champions, played with huge amount of top spin. They have so lot in common that if hypothetically Borg was 25 years younger and played now he'd play nearly exactly as Nadal
On the other side of the net there's either Mcenroe or Federer-a gracefull and classy player with great technique
89Pleasek 2 years ago
History likes repetitions - the Mcenroe/Borg rivalry in the late 70s and 80s and Fed/Rafa now.
Borg was indeed pretty much burned out in 1981, or should I say has been burning out steadily until he lost to Mcenroe in the SW19 final and then boom. Borg was out from tennis at the age of 25. Talking bout history making its mark again - look where Nadal is now and he's barely 23 years old.
Funny thing that Mcenroe and Borg never played on clay...
89Pleasek 2 years ago
you got a point there but you also have to realize that Borg in 1981 was closer to his peak than McEnroe was to his, we all remember what McEnroe was doing in 1984 to the field
89Pleasek 9 months ago
@89Pleasek Players don't always have just one 'peak'. Besides, what to say of the 1985 McEnroe who was so close to his '84 peak? Mac was already a seasoned player in 1981 - he won his first major in 1979.
chapaev36 9 months ago
interesting assessment
ZebZachary 2 years ago
RF
Bottom line, both were equal to each other 7 to 7 head to head. Both were incredible
JimAsian1 2 years ago
When Johnny Mac was on, he was a wizard at the net.
Oh how I miss good old serve and volley tennis
stell29 2 years ago 13
Nice highlights, thanks!
Uintended 2 years ago