Watched an HBO documentary on Borg vs McEnroe which was well done. Talked about Bjorn growing up in Stockholm and McEnroe in New York. Borg came from a very middle-income family while John’s father was a partner at a major NY law firm and able to put John in private academies as well as elite tennis programs.
John won the NCAA singles tennis title at Stanford then the leash was off and he began to explode on the tennis scene.
1980 and 1981 were the sweet spot for McEnroe losing Wimbledon (1980) yet taking the 4th set which is regarded as the greatest set ever played but losing in the 5th
In 1981 McEnroe took it to Borg and won Wimbledon .
One of the interesting things about the documentary was racket preference. McEnroe used a wooden racket with a small face and laced with moderate tension. His game was all about ball placement and he wanted to slow down Borg’s cannon shots to volley to areas Borg had no shot
Borg liked a metal racket tightly strung to over power opponents with velocity.
IMO Bjorg was more physical and better prepared but McEnroe was smarter.
1 on 1 matches 7-7 . . ..Grand slam events McEnroe 3 to 1
Fast forward Pete Sampras takes the court and begins a complete domination of US tennis. With his pizza sized titanium racket and high-tension nylon strings.
7 Wimbedon titles and 5 US Open titles
So who’s the best US tennis player in history?
IMHO a tie with McEnroe and Sampras. The evolution of the racket has changed but that will never change McEnroe’s contribution.
Thoughts?
John won the NCAA singles tennis title at Stanford then the leash was off and he began to explode on the tennis scene.
1980 and 1981 were the sweet spot for McEnroe losing Wimbledon (1980) yet taking the 4th set which is regarded as the greatest set ever played but losing in the 5th
In 1981 McEnroe took it to Borg and won Wimbledon .
One of the interesting things about the documentary was racket preference. McEnroe used a wooden racket with a small face and laced with moderate tension. His game was all about ball placement and he wanted to slow down Borg’s cannon shots to volley to areas Borg had no shot
Borg liked a metal racket tightly strung to over power opponents with velocity.
IMO Bjorg was more physical and better prepared but McEnroe was smarter.
1 on 1 matches 7-7 . . ..Grand slam events McEnroe 3 to 1
Fast forward Pete Sampras takes the court and begins a complete domination of US tennis. With his pizza sized titanium racket and high-tension nylon strings.
7 Wimbedon titles and 5 US Open titles
So who’s the best US tennis player in history?
IMHO a tie with McEnroe and Sampras. The evolution of the racket has changed but that will never change McEnroe’s contribution.
Thoughts?
