Björn Borg
Encyclopedia
Björn Rune Borg is a former world no. 1 tennis player from Sweden
. Between 1974 and 1981 he won 11 Grand Slam
singles titles. He won five consecutive Wimbledon
singles titles (a record shared with Roger Federer
) and six French Open singles titles (a record shared with Rafael Nadal
). He is considered by many to be one of the greatest tennis players of all time.
During his relatively brief pro career, Borg won 41% of the Grand Slam
singles tournaments he entered (11 of 27) and 89.81% (141–16) of the Grand Slam singles matches he played, At Wimbledon his match win/loss at 92.73% (51–4) and most notably his winning percentage rate across all the surfaces carpet, clay, hard, and grass was 82.72% (608/127) and are records for an entire career. He is one of four players in the open era to win both Wimbledon and the French Open in the same year and the only player to do so for three consecutive years. He also won three year-end championship titles, including two Masters Grand Prix
titles and one WCT Final
title. In addition, he won 15 Championship Series
titles (1974–1980) the precursors to the current Masters 1000
.
Borg was the first "rock star" of professional tennis and first player to earn more than one million dollars in prize money in a single season (1979).
, Sweden. As a child, Borg became fascinated with a golden tennis racquet that his father won at a table-tennis tournament. His father gave him the racquet, beginning his tennis career.
A player of great athleticism and endurance, he had a distinctive style and appearance—bowlegged, yet very fast. His muscularity allowed him to put heavy topspin on both his forehand and backhand. He used a then unorthodox two-handed backhand, adapted from the slap shot in hockey, a game he favoured as a child. By the time he was 13 he was beating the best of Sweden's under-18 players, and Davis Cup captain Lennart Bergelin
cautioned against anyone trying to change Borg's rough-looking, jerky strokes. They were effective.
Borg joined the professional circuit at age 14. In 1972, at the age of 15, Borg became one of the youngest players ever to represent his country in the Davis Cup
and won his debut singles rubber in five sets against seasoned professional Onny Parun
of New Zealand. Later that year, he won the Wimbledon junior singles title, recovering from a 5–2 deficit in the final set to overcome Britain's Buster Mottram
.
In 1973, Borg reached the Wimbledon main draw quarterfinals in his first attempt. Just before his 18th birthday in 1974, Borg won his first top-level singles title at the Italian Open
, becoming its youngest winner. Two weeks later he became the then-youngest winner of the French Open defeating Manuel Orantes
in the final, 2–6, 6–7, 6–0, 6–1, 6–1. Barely 18 at the time, Borg was the youngest-ever male French Open champion (the record has since been lowered by Mats Wilander
in 1982 and Michael Chang
in 1989).
In early 1975, Borg defeated the great Rod Laver
, then 36 years old, in a semifinal of the World Championship Tennis
(WCT) finals in Dallas, Texas
, 7–6, 3–6, 5–7, 7–6, 6–2. Borg subsequently lost to Arthur Ashe
in the final.
Borg retained his French Open title in 1975, beating Guillermo Vilas
in the final in straight sets. Borg then reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals, where he lost to eventual champion Ashe, 6–2, 4–6, 6–8, 1–6. Borg did not lose another match at Wimbledon until 1981.
Borg won two singles and one doubles rubber in the 1975 Davis Cup final, as Sweden beat Czechoslovakia
3–2. With these singles wins, Borg had won 19 consecutive Davis Cup singles rubbers since 1973. That was already a record at the time. However, Borg never lost another Davis Cup singles rubber, and, by the end of his career, he had stretched that winning streak to 33—a Davis Cup record that still stands.
In early 1976, Borg won the World Championship Tennis
year-end WCT Finals
in Dallas, Texas
with a four-set victory over Guillermo Vilas
in the final.
At the 1976 French Open, Borg lost to the Italian Adriano Panatta
, who remains the only player to defeat Borg at this tournament. Panatta did it twice: in the fourth round in 1973 (7–6, 2–6, 7–5, 7–6), and in the 1976 quarterfinals (6–3, 6–3, 2–6, 7–6).
Borg won Wimbledon in 1976 without losing a set, defeating the favored Ilie Năstase
in the final. Borg became the youngest male Wimbledon champion of the modern era at 20 years and 1 month (a record subsequently broken by Boris Becker
, who won Wimbledon aged 17 in 1985). It would be the last time Borg played Wimbledon as an underdog. Năstase later exclaimed, "We're playing tennis, he's [Borg] playing something else."
Borg also reached the final of the 1976 US Open
, which was then being played on clay courts. Borg lost in four sets to world no. 1 Jimmy Connors
.
Borg skipped the French Open in 1977 because he was under contract with WTT
, but he repeated his Wimbledon triumph, although this time he was pushed much harder. He defeated his good friend Vitas Gerulaitis
in a semifinal, 6–4, 3–6, 6–3, 3–6, 8–6. In the final, Borg was pushed to five sets for the third time in the tournament, this time by Connors. The win propelled Borg to the no. 1 ranking on the computer, albeit for just one week in August.
Through 1977, he had never lost to a player younger than himself.
Borg was at the height of his career from 1978 through 1980, completing the difficult French Open-Wimbledon double all three years.
In 1978, Borg won the French Open with a win over Vilas in the final. Borg did not drop a set during the tournament, a feat only he, Năstase (in 1973), and Rafael Nadal
(in 2008 and 2010) have accomplished at the French Open during the open era.
Borg defeated Connors in straight sets at the 1978 Wimbledon. At the US Open, now held on hard courts in Flushing Meadow, New York, he lost the final in straight sets to Connors. That autumn, Borg faced John McEnroe
for the first time in a semifinal of the Stockholm Open and was upset, 3–6, 4–6.
Borg lost to McEnroe again in four sets in the final of the 1979 WCT Finals but was now overtaking Connors for the top ranking. Borg established himself firmly in the top spot with his fourth French Open singles title and fourth straight Wimbledon singles title, defeating Connors in a straight-set semifinal at the latter tournament. At the French Open, Borg defeated big-serving Victor Pecci
in a four-set final, and at Wimbledon, Borg took five sets to overcome an even bigger server, Roscoe Tanner
. Borg was upset by Tanner at the US Open, in a four-set quarterfinal played under the lights.
At the season-ending Masters
tournament in January 1980, Borg survived a close semifinal against McEnroe, 6–7, 6–3, 7–6(1). He then beat Gerulaitis in straight sets, winning his first Masters and first title in New York. In June, he overcame Gerulaitis, again in straight sets, for his fifth French Open title. Again, he did not drop a set.
Borg won his fifth consecutive Wimbledon singles title, the 1980 Wimbledon Men's Singles final, by defeating McEnroe in a five-set match, often cited as the best Wimbledon final ever played. Having lost the opening set 6–1 to an all-out McEnroe assault, Borg took the next two 7–5, 6–3 and had two championship points at 5–4 in the fourth. However, McEnroe averted disaster and went on to level the match in Wimbledon's most memorable 34-point tiebreaker, which he won 18–16. In the fourth-set tiebreak, McEnroe saved five match points, and Borg six set points, before McEnroe won the set. Bjorn served first to begin the 5th set and fell behind 15–40. Borg then won 19 straight points on serve in the deciding set and prevailed after 3 hours, 53 minutes. Borg himself commented years later that this was the first time that he was afraid that he would lose, as well as feeling that it was the beginning of the end of his dominance.
Borg married Romanian tennis pro Mariana Simionescu
in Bucharest
on 24 July 1980.
He defeated McEnroe in the final of the 1980 Stockholm Open, 6–3, 6–4, and faced him one more time that year, in the round-robin portion of the year-end Masters, played in January 1981. With 19,103 fans in attendance, Borg won a deciding third-set tie-break for the second year in a row, 6–4, 6–7, 7–6(2). Borg then defeated Ivan Lendl
for his second Masters title, 6–4, 6–2, 6–2.
Borg won his last Grand Slam title at the French Open in 1981, defeating Lendl in a five-set final. Borg has a six French Open Grand Slam titles record equaled only by Rafael Nadal
in 2011.
In reaching the Wimbledon final in 1981, Borg stretched his winning streak at the All England Club to a record 41 matches. In a semifinal, Borg was down to Connors by two sets to love, before coming back to win the match, 0–6, 4–6, 6–3, 6–0, 6–4. However, Borg's streak was brought to an end by McEnroe, who defeated him in four sets, 6–4, 6–7, 6–7, 4–6.
Borg went on to lose to McEnroe at the 1981 US Open, 6–4, 2–6, 4–6, 3–6. After that defeat, Borg walked off the court and out of the stadium before the ceremonies and press conference had begun. There are reports that Borg received threats after his semifinal win over Connors. In later years, Borg apologized to McEnroe. The 1981 US Open would be the Swede's last Grand Slam final. Major tournaments and tour organizers were enforcing a new rule by 1982, that players had to play at least 10 official tournaments per year. However, Borg wanted to curtail his schedule after many years of winning so often. Although he felt in good condition physically, he recognized that the relentless drive to win and defy tour organizers had begun to fade.
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. He played on hard courts at the US Open from 1978–1981 and reached the final there on three occasions, in 1978, 1980, and 1981. He led 3–2 in the fifth set of the 1980 final, before losing. That match followed Borg's classic encounter with McEnroe at the 1980 Wimbledon. In 1978, 1979 and 1980, Borg was halfway to a Grand Slam after victories at the French and Wimbledon (the Australian Open being the last Grand Slam tournament of each year at the time) only to falter at Flushing Meadow, lefty Tanner his conqueror in 1979.
He appeared only once at the Australian Open, at the age of 17, at which he lost in an early round.
In 1982, Borg played only one tournament, losing to Yannick Noah
in the quarterfinals of Monte Carlo in April. Nevertheless, Borg's announcement in January 1983 that he was retiring from the game at the age of 26 was a shock to the tennis world. McEnroe tried unsuccessfully to persuade Borg to continue. (He did, however, play Monte Carlo again in March 1983, reaching the second round, and Stuttgart in July 1984.)
ended in divorce, he fathered a child by the Swedish model Jannike Bjorling, and he was briefly married to the Italian singer Loredana Bertè
. There were rumors of a drug overdose and an attempted suicide, yet Borg laughs them off as silly rumors. He states that he only took sleeping pills, yet the Italian press reported it as a suicide attempt, and he narrowly avoided personal bankruptcy due to bad business partners.
Borg later bounced back as the owner of the Björn Borg fashion label, whose most noted advertising campaigns asked Swedes (from the pages of a leading national newspaper) to "Fuck for the Future." His label has since become extremely successful second only to Calvin Klein
in his home country.
in his first match back, again at Monte Carlo, and fell 2–6, 3–6. In his first nine matches, played in 1991 and 92, Borg failed to win a single set. He fared slightly better in 1993, taking a set off his opponent in each of the three matches he played. He came closest to getting a win in what turned out to be his final tour match, falling 6–4, 3–6, 6–7 to Alexander Volkov.
In 1992, Borg, 35, using a Donnay Graphite Midsize racket strung at 85 lbs. tension defeated John Lloyd, 37, at the Inglewood Forum Tennis Challenge 6–4, 6–3.
Borg later joined the champions tour, returning to shorter hair and continuing using modern racquets.
in London announced that it would auction Borg's Wimbledon trophies and two of his winning rackets on 21 June 2006. Several players then called Borg wondering what he was thinking, but only McEnroe was able to make Borg reconsider. According to Dagens Nyheter
– who had talked to Borg – McEnroe called from New York and asked, "What's up? Have you gone mad?" The conversation apparently persuaded Borg to buy out the trophies from Bonhams at an undisclosed amount.
(16), Pete Sampras
(14), and Roy Emerson
(12). The French Open-Wimbledon double he achieved three times consecutively was called by Wimbledon officials "the most difficult double in tennis" and "a feat considered impossible among today's players." Only Rafael Nadal (in 2008 and 2010) and Roger Federer (in 2009) have managed to achieve this double since, and Rafael Nadal
, Andre Agassi
and Roger Federer
are the only male players since Borg to have won the French Open and Wimbledon men's singles titles over their career. Ilie Năstase
once said about Borg, "We're playing tennis, and he's playing something else".
In his 1979 autobiography, Jack Kramer
, the long-time tennis promoter and great player himself, had already included Borg in his list of the 21 greatest players of all time. And in 2003, Bud Collins
chose Borg as one of his top-five male players of all time.
In 2008, ESPN.com
asked tennis analysts, writers, and former players to build the perfect open era player. Borg was the only player mentioned in four categories—defense, footwork, intangibles, and mental toughness—with his mental game and footwork singled-out as the best in open era history.
Borg never won the US Open or the Australian Open, losing in the final at the US Open four times. The only players to defeat Borg in a Grand Slam final were fellow World No. 1 tennis players John McEnroe
and Jimmy Connors
. Even though it was then played on grass, a surface where he enjoyed much success, Borg chose to play the Australian Open only once, in 1974, where he lost in the third round. Phil Dent
, a contemporary of Borg, has pointed out that skipping Grand Slam tournaments – especially the Australian Open – was not unusual then, before counting Grand Slam titles became the norm. Additionally, another contemporary Arthur Ashe
told Sports Illustrated
, "I think Bjorn could have won the U.S. Open. I think he could have won the Grand Slam. But by the time he left, the historical challenge didn't mean anything. He was bigger than the game. He was like Elvis or Liz Taylor or somebody."
, which made his ground strokes very consistent. There had been other players, particularly Rod Laver and Arthur Ashe
, who played with topspin on both the forehand and backhand. Yet Laver and Ashe used topspin only as a way to mix up their shots and pass their opponents at the net easily. Borg was one of the first top players to use heavy topspin on his shots consistently.
Complementing his consistent ground-strokes was his fitness. Both of these factors allowed Borg to be dominant at the French Open.
One of the factors that made Borg unique was his dominance on the grass courts of Wimbledon, where baseliners since World War II did not usually succeed. Some experts attributed his dominance on this surface to his consistency, an underrated serve, and his adaptation to grass courts. Against the best players, he almost always served-and-volleyed on his first serves (but he naturally played from the baseline after his second serves).
Another trait usually associated with Borg is his grace under pressure. His calm court demeanor earned him the nickname of the "Ice Man" or "Ice-Borg."
Borg's physical conditioning was legendary and unrivalled. He could outlast most of his opponents under the most grueling conditions. Contrary to popular belief, however, this wasn't due to his exceptionally low resting heart rate, often reported to be near 35 beats per minute. In his introduction to Borg's autobiography My Life and Game, Eugene Scott relates that this rumor arose from a medical exam the 18-year-old Borg once took for military service, where his pulse was recorded as 38. Scott goes on to reveal Borg's true pulse rate as "about 50 when he wakes up and around 60 in the afternoon." Borg is credited with helping to develop the style of play that has come to dominate the game today.
1The Masters tournaments for calendar years 1977, 1979, and 1980 were actually held in January of the following year. In this table, however, the year of the tournament is listed for the preceding year.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. Between 1974 and 1981 he won 11 Grand Slam
Grand Slam (tennis)
The four Major tennis tournaments, also called the Slams, are the most important tennis events of the year in terms of world tour ranking points, tradition, prize-money awarded, strength and size of player field, and public attention. They are the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and...
singles titles. He won five consecutive Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...
singles titles (a record shared with Roger Federer
Roger Federer
Roger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...
) and six French Open singles titles (a record shared with Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal
Rafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. , he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals...
). He is considered by many to be one of the greatest tennis players of all time.
During his relatively brief pro career, Borg won 41% of the Grand Slam
Grand Slam (tennis)
The four Major tennis tournaments, also called the Slams, are the most important tennis events of the year in terms of world tour ranking points, tradition, prize-money awarded, strength and size of player field, and public attention. They are the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and...
singles tournaments he entered (11 of 27) and 89.81% (141–16) of the Grand Slam singles matches he played, At Wimbledon his match win/loss at 92.73% (51–4) and most notably his winning percentage rate across all the surfaces carpet, clay, hard, and grass was 82.72% (608/127) and are records for an entire career. He is one of four players in the open era to win both Wimbledon and the French Open in the same year and the only player to do so for three consecutive years. He also won three year-end championship titles, including two Masters Grand Prix
Masters Cup
The Masters Cup is an annual disc golf tournament held at De Laveaga Disc Golf Course in Santa Cruz, California. The event features both amateur and professional divisions...
titles and one WCT Final
WCT Finals
The WCT Finals was a tennis tournament that served as the season-ending championship for the World Championship Tennis circuit. The event was held annually in Dallas, Texas, and played on indoor carpet courts. The 1971 quarterfinals and semifinals were played in Houston, and final played at Moody...
title. In addition, he won 15 Championship Series
Grand Prix Tennis Championship Series 1970-1989
The Championship Series of nine tennis tournaments, formed part of the Grand Prix and World Championship Tennis tours, and were held annually throughout the year in Europe, North America, Africa and Asia...
titles (1974–1980) the precursors to the current Masters 1000
ATP World Tour Masters 1000
The ATP World Tour Masters 1000 is a series of nine tennis tournaments that are part of the Association of Tennis Professionals tour, held annually throughout the year in Europe, North America and Asia...
.
Borg was the first "rock star" of professional tennis and first player to earn more than one million dollars in prize money in a single season (1979).
Life and career
Borg was born in SödertäljeSödertälje
Södertälje is a city and the seat of Södertälje Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 86,069 inhabitants in 2010.The industrial city, about south of Stockholm, is the home to truck maker Scania AB and a top 10 pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca....
, Sweden. As a child, Borg became fascinated with a golden tennis racquet that his father won at a table-tennis tournament. His father gave him the racquet, beginning his tennis career.
A player of great athleticism and endurance, he had a distinctive style and appearance—bowlegged, yet very fast. His muscularity allowed him to put heavy topspin on both his forehand and backhand. He used a then unorthodox two-handed backhand, adapted from the slap shot in hockey, a game he favoured as a child. By the time he was 13 he was beating the best of Sweden's under-18 players, and Davis Cup captain Lennart Bergelin
Lennart Bergelin
Lennart Bergelin was a Swedish tennis player and coach. As a player, for AIK, Bergelin won nine Swedish championship singles titles between 1945 and 1955, and the French Open doubles title in 1948. Bergelin is best known for his work with Björn Borg, whom he trained between 1971 and 1983, helping...
cautioned against anyone trying to change Borg's rough-looking, jerky strokes. They were effective.
Borg joined the professional circuit at age 14. In 1972, at the age of 15, Borg became one of the youngest players ever to represent his country in the Davis Cup
Davis Cup
The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation and is contested between teams of players from competing countries in a knock-out format. The competition began in 1900 as a challenge between Britain and the United States. By...
and won his debut singles rubber in five sets against seasoned professional Onny Parun
Onny Parun
Onny Parun is a former tennis player of Croatian descent from New Zealand, who was among the world's top 20 for five years and in 1971 and 1972 he reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. He made the final of the Australian Open in 1973, losing to John Newcombe in four sets, and was a U.S...
of New Zealand. Later that year, he won the Wimbledon junior singles title, recovering from a 5–2 deficit in the final set to overcome Britain's Buster Mottram
Buster Mottram
Christopher Mottram is a former English tennis player, who achieved a highest lifetime ranking of fifteenth in the world.Mottram represented Great Britain in the Davis Cup eight times...
.
In 1973, Borg reached the Wimbledon main draw quarterfinals in his first attempt. Just before his 18th birthday in 1974, Borg won his first top-level singles title at the Italian Open
Rome Masters
The Italian Open is an annual tennis tournament held in Rome, Italy. It is the most prestigious red clay tennis tournament in the world after the French Open, with the men's competition being an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event on the Association of Tennis Professionals tour, and the women's...
, becoming its youngest winner. Two weeks later he became the then-youngest winner of the French Open defeating Manuel Orantes
Manuel Orantes
Manuel Orantes Corral was a tennis champion in the 1970s and 1980s. He won the US Open in 1975, beating defending champion Jimmy Connors in the final.-Career:...
in the final, 2–6, 6–7, 6–0, 6–1, 6–1. Barely 18 at the time, Borg was the youngest-ever male French Open champion (the record has since been lowered by Mats Wilander
Mats Wilander
Mats Wilander is a former World No. 1 tennis player from Sweden. From 1982 through 1988, he won seven Grand Slam singles titles , and one Grand Slam men's doubles title...
in 1982 and Michael Chang
Michael Chang
Michael Te-Pei Chang is a former American professional tennis player. He is best remembered for becoming the youngest-ever male player to win a Grand Slam singles title when he won the French Open in 1989 at the age of 17....
in 1989).
In early 1975, Borg defeated the great Rod Laver
Rod Laver
Rodney George "Rod" Laver MBE is an Australian former tennis player who holds the record for titles won in career, and was the World No. 1 player for seven consecutive years, from 1964 to 1970...
, then 36 years old, in a semifinal of the World Championship Tennis
World Championship Tennis
World Championship Tennis was a tour for professional male tennis players established in 1968 and lasted until the emergence of the ATP Tour in 1990...
(WCT) finals in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
, 7–6, 3–6, 5–7, 7–6, 6–2. Borg subsequently lost to Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Robert Ashe, Jr. was a professional tennis player, born and raised in Richmond, Virginia. During his career, he won three Grand Slam titles, putting him among the best ever from the United States...
in the final.
Borg retained his French Open title in 1975, beating Guillermo Vilas
Guillermo Vilas
Guillermo Apolinario Vilas is a retired and former World No. 2 professional tennis player from Argentina. He was the second Latin-American to win a Grand Slam tournament.-Career:...
in the final in straight sets. Borg then reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals, where he lost to eventual champion Ashe, 6–2, 4–6, 6–8, 1–6. Borg did not lose another match at Wimbledon until 1981.
Borg won two singles and one doubles rubber in the 1975 Davis Cup final, as Sweden beat Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
3–2. With these singles wins, Borg had won 19 consecutive Davis Cup singles rubbers since 1973. That was already a record at the time. However, Borg never lost another Davis Cup singles rubber, and, by the end of his career, he had stretched that winning streak to 33—a Davis Cup record that still stands.
In early 1976, Borg won the World Championship Tennis
World Championship Tennis
World Championship Tennis was a tour for professional male tennis players established in 1968 and lasted until the emergence of the ATP Tour in 1990...
year-end WCT Finals
WCT Finals
The WCT Finals was a tennis tournament that served as the season-ending championship for the World Championship Tennis circuit. The event was held annually in Dallas, Texas, and played on indoor carpet courts. The 1971 quarterfinals and semifinals were played in Houston, and final played at Moody...
in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
with a four-set victory over Guillermo Vilas
Guillermo Vilas
Guillermo Apolinario Vilas is a retired and former World No. 2 professional tennis player from Argentina. He was the second Latin-American to win a Grand Slam tournament.-Career:...
in the final.
At the 1976 French Open, Borg lost to the Italian Adriano Panatta
Adriano Panatta
Adriano Panatta is a former professional tennis player from Italy. He is best remembered for winning the French Open in 1976, and for being the only player to ever defeat Björn Borg at Roland Garros, which he did on two occasions.-Career:...
, who remains the only player to defeat Borg at this tournament. Panatta did it twice: in the fourth round in 1973 (7–6, 2–6, 7–5, 7–6), and in the 1976 quarterfinals (6–3, 6–3, 2–6, 7–6).
Borg won Wimbledon in 1976 without losing a set, defeating the favored Ilie Năstase
Ilie Nastase
Ilie Nastase is a Romanian former professional tennis player, one of the world's top players of the 1970s. Năstase was the World No. 1 tennis player between 1973 and 1974 . He is one of the five players in history to win more than 100 ATP professional titles . He was inducted into the...
in the final. Borg became the youngest male Wimbledon champion of the modern era at 20 years and 1 month (a record subsequently broken by Boris Becker
Boris Becker
Boris Franz Becker is a former World No. 1 professional tennis player from Germany. He is a six-time Grand Slam singles champion, an Olympic gold medalist, and the youngest-ever winner of the men's singles title at Wimbledon at the age of 17...
, who won Wimbledon aged 17 in 1985). It would be the last time Borg played Wimbledon as an underdog. Năstase later exclaimed, "We're playing tennis, he's [Borg] playing something else."
Borg also reached the final of the 1976 US Open
U.S. Open (tennis)
The US Open, formally the United States Open Tennis Championships, is a hardcourt tennis tournament which is the modern iteration of one of the oldest tennis championships in the world, the U.S. National Championship, which for men's singles was first contested in 1881...
, which was then being played on clay courts. Borg lost in four sets to world no. 1 Jimmy Connors
Jimmy Connors
James Scott "Jimmy" Connors is an American former world no. 1 tennis player....
.
Borg skipped the French Open in 1977 because he was under contract with WTT
World Team Tennis
World TeamTennis is a coed professional tennis league played with a unique team format in the United States. Each match consists of five sets. Each set features a different configuration . Coaches, before the match, decide the order in which the sets will be played...
, but he repeated his Wimbledon triumph, although this time he was pushed much harder. He defeated his good friend Vitas Gerulaitis
Vitas Gerulaitis
Vytautas Kevin Gerulaitis was a Lithuanian–American professional tennis player. He is known for winning the men's singles title at one of the two Australian Open tournaments held in 1977. Gerulaitis won the tournament held in December, while Roscoe Tanner won the earlier January tournament...
in a semifinal, 6–4, 3–6, 6–3, 3–6, 8–6. In the final, Borg was pushed to five sets for the third time in the tournament, this time by Connors. The win propelled Borg to the no. 1 ranking on the computer, albeit for just one week in August.
Through 1977, he had never lost to a player younger than himself.
Borg was at the height of his career from 1978 through 1980, completing the difficult French Open-Wimbledon double all three years.
In 1978, Borg won the French Open with a win over Vilas in the final. Borg did not drop a set during the tournament, a feat only he, Năstase (in 1973), and Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal
Rafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. , he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals...
(in 2008 and 2010) have accomplished at the French Open during the open era.
Borg defeated Connors in straight sets at the 1978 Wimbledon. At the US Open, now held on hard courts in Flushing Meadow, New York, he lost the final in straight sets to Connors. That autumn, Borg faced John McEnroe
John McEnroe
John Patrick McEnroe, Jr. is a former world no. 1 professional tennis player from the United States. During his career, he won seven Grand Slam singles titles , nine Grand Slam men's doubles titles, and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title...
for the first time in a semifinal of the Stockholm Open and was upset, 3–6, 4–6.
Borg lost to McEnroe again in four sets in the final of the 1979 WCT Finals but was now overtaking Connors for the top ranking. Borg established himself firmly in the top spot with his fourth French Open singles title and fourth straight Wimbledon singles title, defeating Connors in a straight-set semifinal at the latter tournament. At the French Open, Borg defeated big-serving Victor Pecci
Víctor Pecci
Víctor Pecci is a former professional Paraguayan tennis player. Pecci was born in Asunción.Pecci was ranked as high as World No. 9 in singles in 1980 and World No. 31 in doubles in 1984. Pecci is famous for reaching the 1979 French Open final...
in a four-set final, and at Wimbledon, Borg took five sets to overcome an even bigger server, Roscoe Tanner
Roscoe Tanner
Roscoe Tanner is an American former professional tennis player, who turned pro in 1972 and reached a career high world singles ranking of World No...
. Borg was upset by Tanner at the US Open, in a four-set quarterfinal played under the lights.
At the season-ending Masters
Tennis Masters Cup
The Barclays ATP World Tour Finals is a tennis tournament played at the end of each year, involving the top eight players in the men's tennis world rankings....
tournament in January 1980, Borg survived a close semifinal against McEnroe, 6–7, 6–3, 7–6(1). He then beat Gerulaitis in straight sets, winning his first Masters and first title in New York. In June, he overcame Gerulaitis, again in straight sets, for his fifth French Open title. Again, he did not drop a set.
Borg won his fifth consecutive Wimbledon singles title, the 1980 Wimbledon Men's Singles final, by defeating McEnroe in a five-set match, often cited as the best Wimbledon final ever played. Having lost the opening set 6–1 to an all-out McEnroe assault, Borg took the next two 7–5, 6–3 and had two championship points at 5–4 in the fourth. However, McEnroe averted disaster and went on to level the match in Wimbledon's most memorable 34-point tiebreaker, which he won 18–16. In the fourth-set tiebreak, McEnroe saved five match points, and Borg six set points, before McEnroe won the set. Bjorn served first to begin the 5th set and fell behind 15–40. Borg then won 19 straight points on serve in the deciding set and prevailed after 3 hours, 53 minutes. Borg himself commented years later that this was the first time that he was afraid that he would lose, as well as feeling that it was the beginning of the end of his dominance.
Borg married Romanian tennis pro Mariana Simionescu
Mariana Simionescu
Mariana Simionescu is a former professional tennis player from Romania. She played on the WTA Tour from 1973 to 1980. She won one WTA tour singes title at the Tokyo Outdoors in 1980. Her best Grand Slam performance was reaching the 4th round at Wimbledon in 1977 and she was ranked as high as 7...
in Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
on 24 July 1980.
He defeated McEnroe in the final of the 1980 Stockholm Open, 6–3, 6–4, and faced him one more time that year, in the round-robin portion of the year-end Masters, played in January 1981. With 19,103 fans in attendance, Borg won a deciding third-set tie-break for the second year in a row, 6–4, 6–7, 7–6(2). Borg then defeated Ivan Lendl
Ivan Lendl
Ivan Lendl is a former world no. 1 professional tennis player. Originally from Czechoslovakia, Lendl became a United States citizen. He was one of the game's most dominant players in the 1980s and remained a top competitor into the early 1990s. He is considered to be one of the greatest tennis...
for his second Masters title, 6–4, 6–2, 6–2.
Borg won his last Grand Slam title at the French Open in 1981, defeating Lendl in a five-set final. Borg has a six French Open Grand Slam titles record equaled only by Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal
Rafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. , he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals...
in 2011.
In reaching the Wimbledon final in 1981, Borg stretched his winning streak at the All England Club to a record 41 matches. In a semifinal, Borg was down to Connors by two sets to love, before coming back to win the match, 0–6, 4–6, 6–3, 6–0, 6–4. However, Borg's streak was brought to an end by McEnroe, who defeated him in four sets, 6–4, 6–7, 6–7, 4–6.
Borg went on to lose to McEnroe at the 1981 US Open, 6–4, 2–6, 4–6, 3–6. After that defeat, Borg walked off the court and out of the stadium before the ceremonies and press conference had begun. There are reports that Borg received threats after his semifinal win over Connors. In later years, Borg apologized to McEnroe. The 1981 US Open would be the Swede's last Grand Slam final. Major tournaments and tour organizers were enforcing a new rule by 1982, that players had to play at least 10 official tournaments per year. However, Borg wanted to curtail his schedule after many years of winning so often. Although he felt in good condition physically, he recognized that the relentless drive to win and defy tour organizers had begun to fade.
Borg failed to win the US Open in 10 tries, losing four finals, 1976 and 1978 to Jimmy Connors
Jimmy Connors
James Scott "Jimmy" Connors is an American former world no. 1 tennis player....
, and 1980 and 1981 to McEnroe. He played on hard courts at the US Open from 1978–1981 and reached the final there on three occasions, in 1978, 1980, and 1981. He led 3–2 in the fifth set of the 1980 final, before losing. That match followed Borg's classic encounter with McEnroe at the 1980 Wimbledon. In 1978, 1979 and 1980, Borg was halfway to a Grand Slam after victories at the French and Wimbledon (the Australian Open being the last Grand Slam tournament of each year at the time) only to falter at Flushing Meadow, lefty Tanner his conqueror in 1979.
He appeared only once at the Australian Open, at the age of 17, at which he lost in an early round.
In 1982, Borg played only one tournament, losing to Yannick Noah
Yannick Noah
Yannick Noah is a former professional tennis player from France. He is best remembered for being the last French man to win the French Open in 1983, and as a highly-successful captain of France's Davis Cup and Fed Cup teams...
in the quarterfinals of Monte Carlo in April. Nevertheless, Borg's announcement in January 1983 that he was retiring from the game at the age of 26 was a shock to the tennis world. McEnroe tried unsuccessfully to persuade Borg to continue. (He did, however, play Monte Carlo again in March 1983, reaching the second round, and Stuttgart in July 1984.)
Retirement
When he retired, Borg had a choice of homes, a penthouse in Monte Carlo, not far from his successful pro shop, and a small island off the Swedish coast. His marriage to the tennis player Mariana SimionescuMariana Simionescu
Mariana Simionescu is a former professional tennis player from Romania. She played on the WTA Tour from 1973 to 1980. She won one WTA tour singes title at the Tokyo Outdoors in 1980. Her best Grand Slam performance was reaching the 4th round at Wimbledon in 1977 and she was ranked as high as 7...
ended in divorce, he fathered a child by the Swedish model Jannike Bjorling, and he was briefly married to the Italian singer Loredana Bertè
Loredana Bertè
Loredana Bertè is an Italian singer. In her long career she has worked with some of the best Italian songwriters such as Enrico Ruggeri, Pino Daniele, Ivano Fossati, Mario Lavezzi, Enzo Jannacci and Mango, among others. She has experimented with different genres, from rock to reggae, from funk to...
. There were rumors of a drug overdose and an attempted suicide, yet Borg laughs them off as silly rumors. He states that he only took sleeping pills, yet the Italian press reported it as a suicide attempt, and he narrowly avoided personal bankruptcy due to bad business partners.
Borg later bounced back as the owner of the Björn Borg fashion label, whose most noted advertising campaigns asked Swedes (from the pages of a leading national newspaper) to "Fuck for the Future." His label has since become extremely successful second only to Calvin Klein
Calvin Klein
Calvin Richard Klein is an American fashion designer who launched the company that would later become Calvin Klein Inc. in 1968. In addition to clothing, Klein has also given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and jewelry....
in his home country.
Attempted comeback
In the early-1990s, Borg attempted a comeback on the men's professional tennis tour. In doing so, he grew his hair out as it had been when he retired and returned to using a wooden racket – he had kept his hair cut and used modern graphite rackets in exhibitions he played during the later 1980s. This time around, however, he was completely unsuccessful. In fact, Borg failed to win a single match. He faced Jordi ArreseJordi Arrese
Jordi Arrese i Castañé is a former professional tennis player from Spain.Born in Barcelona, Arrese won the men's singles Silver Medal at the 1992 Olympic Games in his home-town of Barcelona...
in his first match back, again at Monte Carlo, and fell 2–6, 3–6. In his first nine matches, played in 1991 and 92, Borg failed to win a single set. He fared slightly better in 1993, taking a set off his opponent in each of the three matches he played. He came closest to getting a win in what turned out to be his final tour match, falling 6–4, 3–6, 6–7 to Alexander Volkov.
In 1992, Borg, 35, using a Donnay Graphite Midsize racket strung at 85 lbs. tension defeated John Lloyd, 37, at the Inglewood Forum Tennis Challenge 6–4, 6–3.
Borg later joined the champions tour, returning to shorter hair and continuing using modern racquets.
Memorabilia preserved
In March 2006, Bonhams Auction HouseBonhams
Bonhams is a privately owned British auction house founded in 1793. It is the third largest auctioneer after Sotheby's and Christie's, and conducts around 700 auctions per year. It has 700 employees....
in London announced that it would auction Borg's Wimbledon trophies and two of his winning rackets on 21 June 2006. Several players then called Borg wondering what he was thinking, but only McEnroe was able to make Borg reconsider. According to Dagens Nyheter
Dagens Nyheter
is a daily newspaper in Sweden. It has the largest circulation of Swedish morning newspapers, followed by Göteborgs-Posten and Svenska Dagbladet, and is the only morning newspaper that is distributed to subscribers across the whole country. In 2009 DN had a circulation of 316,000, reaching 881...
– who had talked to Borg – McEnroe called from New York and asked, "What's up? Have you gone mad?" The conversation apparently persuaded Borg to buy out the trophies from Bonhams at an undisclosed amount.
Distinctions and honors
- Borg was ranked by the ATP rankings World No. 1 in six different stretches between 1977 and 1981, totaling 109 weeks.
- During his career, he won a total of 77 (61 listed on the Association of Tennis ProfessionalsAssociation of Tennis ProfessionalsThe Association of Tennis Professionals or ATP was formed in 1972 by Donald Dell, Jack Kramer, and Cliff Drysdale to protect the interests of male professional tennis players. Since 1990, the association has organized the worldwide tennis tour for men and linked the title of the tour with the...
website) top-level singles and four doubles titles. - Borg won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas PersonalityBBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas PersonalityThe BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year is an award presented at the annual BBC Sports Personality of the Year award ceremony. The award is presented to a non-British sportsperson considered to have made the most substantial contribution to a sport in that year. The award is decided by a...
Award in 1979. - Borg was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of FameInternational Tennis Hall of FameThe International Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. The hall of fame and honors players and contributors to the sport of tennis and includes a museum, grass tennis courts, an indoor tennis facility, and a court tennis facility.-History:The hall of fame and...
in 1987. - On 10 December 2006, the British Broadcasting Corporation gave Borg a Lifetime Achievement Award, which was presented by Boris BeckerBoris BeckerBoris Franz Becker is a former World No. 1 professional tennis player from Germany. He is a six-time Grand Slam singles champion, an Olympic gold medalist, and the youngest-ever winner of the men's singles title at Wimbledon at the age of 17...
. - Borg was named one of the 10 Most Superstitious Athletes by Men's FitnessMen's FitnessMen's Fitness is a men's magazine published by American Media, Inc and founded in the United States in 1987. The premier issue featured Michael Pare from the television series The Greatest American Hero....
Place among the all-time greats
With 11 titles, Borg ranks fourth in the list of male tennis players who have won the most Grand Slam singles titles behind Roger FedererRoger Federer
Roger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...
(16), Pete Sampras
Pete Sampras
Pete Sampras is a retired American tennis player and former world no. 1. During his 15-year tour career, he won 14 Grand Slam singles titles and became recognized as one of the greatest tennis players of all time....
(14), and Roy Emerson
Roy Emerson
Roy Stanley Emerson is an Australian former tennis player who won 12 Grand Slam singles titles and 16 Grand Slam men's doubles titles. He is the only male player to have won singles and doubles titles at all four Grand Slam tournaments. His 28 Grand Slam titles are an all-time record for a male...
(12). The French Open-Wimbledon double he achieved three times consecutively was called by Wimbledon officials "the most difficult double in tennis" and "a feat considered impossible among today's players." Only Rafael Nadal (in 2008 and 2010) and Roger Federer (in 2009) have managed to achieve this double since, and Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal
Rafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. , he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals...
, Andre Agassi
Andre Agassi
Andre Kirk Agassi is a retired American professional tennis player and former world no. 1. Generally considered by critics and fellow players to be one of the greatest tennis players of all time, Agassi has been called the best service returner in the history of the game...
and Roger Federer
Roger Federer
Roger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...
are the only male players since Borg to have won the French Open and Wimbledon men's singles titles over their career. Ilie Năstase
Ilie Nastase
Ilie Nastase is a Romanian former professional tennis player, one of the world's top players of the 1970s. Năstase was the World No. 1 tennis player between 1973 and 1974 . He is one of the five players in history to win more than 100 ATP professional titles . He was inducted into the...
once said about Borg, "We're playing tennis, and he's playing something else".
In his 1979 autobiography, Jack Kramer
Jack Kramer (tennis player)
John Albert Kramer was an American tennis player of the 1940s. A World Number 1 player for a number of years, he is a possible candidate for the title of the greatest tennis player of all time. He was considered the father and the leading promoter of the professional tennis tours...
, the long-time tennis promoter and great player himself, had already included Borg in his list of the 21 greatest players of all time. And in 2003, Bud Collins
Bud Collins
-External links:*** 2001 interview with Collins*...
chose Borg as one of his top-five male players of all time.
In 2008, ESPN.com
ESPN.com
ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN and a division of ESPN Inc. Since launching in 1995 as ESPNet.SportsZone.com, the website has developed numerous sections including: Page 2, SportsNation, ESPN 3.com, ESPN Motion, My ESPN, ESPN Sports Travel, ESPN Video Games, ESPN Insider, ESPN.com's...
asked tennis analysts, writers, and former players to build the perfect open era player. Borg was the only player mentioned in four categories—defense, footwork, intangibles, and mental toughness—with his mental game and footwork singled-out as the best in open era history.
Borg never won the US Open or the Australian Open, losing in the final at the US Open four times. The only players to defeat Borg in a Grand Slam final were fellow World No. 1 tennis players John McEnroe
John McEnroe
John Patrick McEnroe, Jr. is a former world no. 1 professional tennis player from the United States. During his career, he won seven Grand Slam singles titles , nine Grand Slam men's doubles titles, and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title...
and Jimmy Connors
Jimmy Connors
James Scott "Jimmy" Connors is an American former world no. 1 tennis player....
. Even though it was then played on grass, a surface where he enjoyed much success, Borg chose to play the Australian Open only once, in 1974, where he lost in the third round. Phil Dent
Phil Dent
Phillip "Phil" Dent, born on 14 February 1950, in Sydney, Australia, is a former professional tennis player. Dent's high water mark as a pro singles player was reaching the Australian Open final in 1974, which he lost to Jimmy Connors 7–6, 6–4, 4–6, 6–3...
, a contemporary of Borg, has pointed out that skipping Grand Slam tournaments – especially the Australian Open – was not unusual then, before counting Grand Slam titles became the norm. Additionally, another contemporary Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Robert Ashe, Jr. was a professional tennis player, born and raised in Richmond, Virginia. During his career, he won three Grand Slam titles, putting him among the best ever from the United States...
told Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
, "I think Bjorn could have won the U.S. Open. I think he could have won the Grand Slam. But by the time he left, the historical challenge didn't mean anything. He was bigger than the game. He was like Elvis or Liz Taylor or somebody."
Playing style
Borg had one of the most distinctive playing styles in the open era. Borg played from the baseline, with powerful ground-strokes and a double-handed backhand (very rare at the time and unorthodox). He hit the ball hard and high from the back of the court and brought it down with considerable topspinTopspin
In ball sports, topspin is a property of a ball that rotates as if rolling in the same direction as it is moving. Topspin on a shot imparts a downward force that causes the ball to drop, due to its interaction with the air . It can be generated by hitting the ball with an up-and-forward swing, with...
, which made his ground strokes very consistent. There had been other players, particularly Rod Laver and Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Robert Ashe, Jr. was a professional tennis player, born and raised in Richmond, Virginia. During his career, he won three Grand Slam titles, putting him among the best ever from the United States...
, who played with topspin on both the forehand and backhand. Yet Laver and Ashe used topspin only as a way to mix up their shots and pass their opponents at the net easily. Borg was one of the first top players to use heavy topspin on his shots consistently.
Complementing his consistent ground-strokes was his fitness. Both of these factors allowed Borg to be dominant at the French Open.
One of the factors that made Borg unique was his dominance on the grass courts of Wimbledon, where baseliners since World War II did not usually succeed. Some experts attributed his dominance on this surface to his consistency, an underrated serve, and his adaptation to grass courts. Against the best players, he almost always served-and-volleyed on his first serves (but he naturally played from the baseline after his second serves).
Another trait usually associated with Borg is his grace under pressure. His calm court demeanor earned him the nickname of the "Ice Man" or "Ice-Borg."
Borg's physical conditioning was legendary and unrivalled. He could outlast most of his opponents under the most grueling conditions. Contrary to popular belief, however, this wasn't due to his exceptionally low resting heart rate, often reported to be near 35 beats per minute. In his introduction to Borg's autobiography My Life and Game, Eugene Scott relates that this rumor arose from a medical exam the 18-year-old Borg once took for military service, where his pulse was recorded as 38. Scott goes on to reveal Borg's true pulse rate as "about 50 when he wakes up and around 60 in the afternoon." Borg is credited with helping to develop the style of play that has come to dominate the game today.
Grand Slam and Masters Performance timeline
| Tournament | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | |SR | |W–L | |Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Slam Tournaments | ||||||||||||
| Australian Open Australian Open The Australian Open is the only Grand Slam tennis tournament held in the southern hemisphere. The tournament was held for the first time in 1905 and was last contested on grass in 1987. Since 1972 the Australian Open has been held in Melbourne, Victoria. In 1988, the tournament became a hard court... |
A | 3R | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 1 | 1–1 | 50.00 |
| French Open | 4R | W | W | QF | A | W | W | W | W | 6 / 8 | 49–2 | 96.08 |
| Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors... |
QF | 3R | QF | W | W | W | W | W | F | 5 / 9 | 51–4 | 92.73 |
| US Open | 4R | 2R | SF | F | 4R | F | QF | F | F | 0 / 9 | 40–9 | 81.63 |
| Win–Loss | 10–3 | 11–3 | 16–2 | 17–2 | 10–1 | 20–1 | 18–1 | 20–1 | 19–2 | 11 / 27 | 141–16 | 89.81 |
| Year-End Championship | ||||||||||||
| The Masters Tennis Masters Cup The Barclays ATP World Tour Finals is a tennis tournament played at the end of each year, involving the top eight players in the men's tennis world rankings.... 1 |
A | RR 1974 Commercial Union Assurance Masters – Singles Ilie Năstase was the defending champion but lost in the final 7–6, 6–2, 3–6, 3–6, 6–4 against Guillermo Vilas.-Finals:-Blue Group:... |
F 1975 Commercial Union Assurance Masters – Singles Ilie Năstase won in the final 6–2, 6–2, 6–1 against Björn Borg.-Finals:-Blue Group: Standings are determined by: 1) Number of wins; 2) Number of matches; 3) In two-players-ties, head-to-head records; 4) In three-players-ties, percentage of sets won, or of games won; 5) Steering... |
A | F 1977 Colgate-Palmolive Masters – Singles Jimmy Connors won in the final 6–4, 1–6, 6–4 against Björn Borg.-Finals:-Group A: Standings are determined by: 1) Number of wins; 2) Number of matches; 3) In two-players-ties, head-to-head records; 4) In three-players-ties, percentage of sets won, or of games won; 5) Steering... |
A | W 1979 Colgate-Palmolive Masters – Singles Björn Borg won in the final 6–2, 6–2 againstVitas Gerulaitis.-Finals:-Group A: Standings are determined by: 1) Number of wins; 2) Number of matches; 3) In two-players-ties, head-to-head records; 4) In three-players-ties, percentage of sets won, or of games won; 5) Steering Committee... |
W 1980 Volvo Masters – Singles Björn Borg won in the final 6–4, 6–2, 6–2 against Ivan Lendl.-Finals:-Group A: Standings are determined by: 1) Number of wins; 2) Number of matches; 3) In two-players-ties, head-to-head records; 4) In three-players-ties, percentage of sets won, or of games won; 5) Steering... |
A | 2 / 5 | 15–7 | 68.18 |
| Year End Rankings | 18 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |||
1The Masters tournaments for calendar years 1977, 1979, and 1980 were actually held in January of the following year. In this table, however, the year of the tournament is listed for the preceding year.
Records Grand Slam/Other
- These records were attained in the Open Era of tennis.
Grand Slam |Years |Record accomplished |Player tied French Open 1974–75, 1978–81 6 titles overall Rafael Nadal Rafael NadalRafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. , he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals...French Open 1974–81 6 finals Rafael Nadal Rafael NadalRafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. , he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals...French Open 1978–81 4 consecutive titles Rafael Nadal Rafael NadalRafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. , he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals...French Open 1978–81 4 consecutive finals Ivan Lendl Ivan LendlIvan Lendl is a former world no. 1 professional tennis player. Originally from Czechoslovakia, Lendl became a United States citizen. He was one of the game's most dominant players in the 1980s and remained a top competitor into the early 1990s. He is considered to be one of the greatest tennis...
Rafael NadalRafael NadalRafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. , he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals...
Roger FedererRoger FedererRoger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...French Open 1978 & 1980 2 wins without losing a set Rafael Nadal Rafael NadalRafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. , he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals...French Open 1978 Win–loss games single tournament 79.9% (127–32) Stands alone French Open 1978–80 Win–loss sets single tournament 100% (42–0) Stands alone Wimbledon The Championships, WimbledonThe Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...1976–80 5 consecutive titles Roger Federer Roger FedererRoger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...Wimbledon 1976 Only player to win title without losing a set Stands alone Wimbledon 1976–80 Best match winning percentage at 92.72% (51–4) Stands alone Wimbledon 1976–81 41 match winning streak Stands alone Wimbledon 1976 Win–loss sets single tournament 100% (21–0) Stands alone French Open–Wimbledon 1978–80 3 consecutive "Channel Slams": Winning both tournaments in the same year Stands alone Grand Slam Tournaments Grand Slam (tennis)The four Major tennis tournaments, also called the Slams, are the most important tennis events of the year in terms of world tour ranking points, tradition, prize-money awarded, strength and size of player field, and public attention. They are the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and...1974–81 8 consecutive years winning 1+ title Pete Sampras Pete SamprasPete Sampras is a retired American tennis player and former world no. 1. During his 15-year tour career, he won 14 Grand Slam singles titles and became recognized as one of the greatest tennis players of all time....
Roger FedererRoger FedererRoger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...Grand Slam 1976–81 Best title wining percentage 41% (11/27) Stands alone Grand Slam 1976–81 Career match win–loss percentage 89.8% (141–16) Stands alone Grand Slam 1978 Best match win/loss record in Majors single year 95.2% (20/1) Stands alone Grand Slam 1979 Best match win/loss record in Majors single year 94.7% (18/1) Stands alone Grand Slam 1980 Best match win/loss record in Majors single year 95.2% (20/1) Stands alone Grand Slam 1976–80 3 finals won without losing a set Stands alone Grand Slam 1976–80 Career match win–loss sets 100% (63–0) Stands alone Grand Slam 1976–80 Career (games) win–loss 60.8% (3066–1973) Stands alone Grand Slam 1978 Single year win–loss games 66.5% (380–191) Stands alone Grand Slam 1974–81 4 reached 76, 78, 80, 81 without losing a set (72–0) Stands alone Grand Slam 1974–81 7 different Grand Slam champions defeated in finals in a career Stands alone Grand Slam 1974–81 French Open (6) wins & Wimbledon (5) wins combination Stands alone Grand Prix Tour 1975–81 Career match win–loss (all surfaces) 82.72% (608–127) Stands alone Grand Prix Tour 1977–81 5 consecutive seasons with match/win loss over 90.9% Stands alone Grand Prix Tour 1979–80 2 winning streaks of 35+ matches Roger Federer Grand Prix Tour 1975–81 16 titles won as a teenager Rafael Nadal Rafael NadalRafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. , he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals...Davis Cup Davis CupThe Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation and is contested between teams of players from competing countries in a knock-out format. The competition began in 1900 as a challenge between Britain and the United States. By...1974–81 33 match winning streak Stands alone
See also
- List of Grand Slam Men's Singles champions
- List of Swedish sportspeople
- Tennis male players statisticsTennis male players statistics-Professional tennis before the start of the open era:Before the start of the open era in 1968, the professional circuit was much less popular than the traditional amateur circuit. For example, Wimbledon in 1957 was a success despite its being an amateur-only tournament and exclusion of Pancho...
- World number one male tennis player rankings
- Borg-McEnroe rivalryBorg-McEnroe rivalryThe tennis players Björn Borg and John McEnroe met 16 times during their careers with their on-court rivalry highlighted by their contrasting temperaments and styles. Borg was known for his cool and emotionless demeanor on court, while McEnroe was famed for his court-side tantrums. Their rivalry...
- Borg-Connors rivalry
Video
- The Wimbledon Collection – Legends of Wimbledon – Bjorn Borg Standing Room Only, DVD Release Date: 21 September 2004, Run Time: 52 minutes, ASIN: B0002HODA4.
- The Wimbledon Collection – The Classic Match – Borg vs. McEnroe 1981 Final Standing Room Only, DVD Release Date: 21 September 2004, Run Time: 210 minutes, ASIN: B0002HODAE.
- The Wimbledon Collection – The Classic Match – Borg vs. McEnroe 1980 Final Standing Room Only, DVD Release Date: 21 September 2004, Run Time: 240 minutes; ASIN: B0002HOEK8.
- Wimbledon Classic Match: Gerulaitis vs Borg Standing Room Only, DVD Release Date: 31 October 2006, Run Time: 180 minutes, ASIN: B000ICLR8O.