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Björn Borg
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(; born 6 June 1956) is a former World No. 1 tennis player from Sweden who is widely regarded by observers and tennis players as one of the greatest players in the sport's history. He won 11 Grand Slam singles titles between 1974 and 1981 (five at Wimbledon and six at the French Open).
was born in Södertälje, Sweden. Just before his 18th birthday Borg was the youngest winner of the Italian Championship, and two weeks later he was the youngest winner of the French Championship (a record lowered by countryman Mats Wilander, 17, in 1982, and subsequently by Michael Chang, a younger 17 in 1989).
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Encyclopedia
(; born 6 June 1956) is a former World No. 1 tennis player from Sweden who is widely regarded by observers and tennis players as one of the greatest players in the sport's history. He won 11 Grand Slam singles titles between 1974 and 1981 (five at Wimbledon and six at the French Open).
Biography
Borg was born in Södertälje, Sweden. Just before his 18th birthday Borg was the youngest winner of the Italian Championship, and two weeks later he was the youngest winner of the French Championship (a record lowered by countryman Mats Wilander, 17, in 1982, and subsequently by Michael Chang, a younger 17 in 1989). Eighteen months later, at 19, he climaxed a Davis Cup record winning streak of 19 singles by lifting Sweden to the 1975 Cup for the first time in a 3-2 final-round victory over Czechoslovakia. His Cup singles streak of 33 was intact at his retirement, still a record.
During a nine-year career, Borg won 41 percent of the Grand Slam singles tournaments he entered (11 of 27) and 89.8 percent of the Grand Slam singles matches he played. Both are male open era records. In addition, Borg's six French Open singles titles is the all-time record for a male player.
Borg is the only player in the open era to have won both Wimbledon and the French Open in the same year more than once; he did so in three consecutive years. (In 2008 Rafael Nadal became the first player since Borg to win both titles in the same year.)
Career overview
As a child growing up in Södertälje, a town near Stockholm, Borg became fascinated with a golden tennis racquet that his father won at a table-tennis tournament. His father gave him the racquet, beginning one of the brightest careers in tennis history.
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.
In 1974, Borg won his first top-level singles title at the Italian Open. Two weeks later, he won his first Grand Slam title at 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 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, 7–5, 6–2. Borg then lost to Arthur Ashe in the final.
A player of great strength and endurance, he had a distinctive and unorthodox style and appearance, bowlegged, yet very fast. His muscular shoulders and well-developed torso gave him the strength to lash at the ball with heavy topspin on both forehand and backhand. He used a two-handed backhand, adapted from the slap shot in hockey, a game he favored 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. Through 1977 he had never lost to a player younger than himself.
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 2-6, 6-4, 8-6, 6-1. 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. But 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.
The only player who defeated Björn Borg at the French Open is the Italian Adriano Panatta. This happened twice – in the fourth round in 1973 (7–6, 2–6, 7–5, 7–6), and in quarter-finals in 1976 (6–3, 6–3, 2–6, 7–6).
Borg won Wimbledon in 1976 without losing a set, defeating the much-favoured Ilie Nastase 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). Some speculate that Borg's surviving the first week of Wimbledon, when the courts were slick and fast, was the key to his success. This might have been due to the unusually hot conditions that summer. The courts played slower in the second week, which suited Borg's baseline game. 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 missed 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 #1 ranking on the computer, albeit for just one week in August.
Borg was at the height of his career from 1978 through 1980, winning the French Open and Wimbledon all three years.
In 1978, Borg won straight-set finals over Vilas at the French Open and Connors at Wimbledon but was defeated in straight sets by Connors in the final of the US Open, now held on hard courts in Flushing Meadow, New York. That autumn, Borg faced John McEnroe for the first time in a semifinal of the Stockholm Open and was upset 6–3, 6–4. Borg did not drop a set at the 1978 French Open, a feat only he, Nastase, and Rafael Nadal have accomplished during the open era.
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 6–3, 6–7, 7–6(3). 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 in 1980 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. But 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. 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.
Borg lost to McEnroe in another five-set final, this one lasting 4 hours and 13 minutes, at the 1980 US Open. He then defeated McEnroe in the final of the 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(3). 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's six French Open singles titles remains a record for a male player.
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 none 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, 4-6, 7-6, 7-6, 6-4.
Borg went on to lose to McEnroe at the 1981 US Open, 4-6, 6-2, 6-4, 6-3, and the defeat effectively ended Borg's career. After that defeat, Borg walked off court and out of the stadium before the ceremonies and press conference had begun. It would turn out to be the Swede's last Grand Slam final. By the end of 1981, Borg was on the verge of break-down and was mentally drained and physically exhausted.
The U.S. Open was his particular jinx. He failed to win in 10 tries, losing four finals, 1976 and 1978 to Jimmy Connors, and 1980 and 1981 to McEnroe. Thrice (1978, 1979 and 1980) he was halfway to a Grand Slam after victories at the French and Wimbledon only to falter at the three-quarter pole at Flushing Meadow, lefty Tanner his conqueror in 1979.
He had appeared only once at the Australian Open, earlier in his career, at which he lost in one of the earlier rounds.
In 1982, Borg played only one tournament, losing to Yannick Noah in the quarterfinals of Monte Carlo. 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.
Retirement
When he retired, he 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.
Borg's marriage to the tennis player Mariana Simionescu ended in divorce, he fathered a child by another woman, and he was briefly married to the Italian singer Loredana Bertè. There were rumors of a drug overdose and an attempted suicide, both of which Borg denies, and he narrowly averted personal bankruptcy.
He 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 second only to Calvin Klein in his home country.
Attempted comeback
In the early-1990s, Borg attempted a comeback on the men's professional tennis tour. This time around, however, he was completely unsuccessful. Playing with his old wooden rackets in an attempt to regain his once-indomitable touch, he lost his first comeback match in 1991 to Jordi Arrese at the Monte Carlo Open. A series of first-round losses to low-ranked players followed over the next two years. The closest he came to winning a match was in 1993 in Moscow, when he pushed Alexander Volkov to three sets and lost a final set tiebreaker 9–7. After that match, he retired from the tour for good and confined himself to playing on the senior tour, with modern rackets, where he renewed his old rivalries with John McEnroe (he was 7-7 lifetime against McEnroe), Jimmy Connors (against whom he had been 10-7) and Guillermo Vilas.
Memorabilia preserved
In March 2006, Bonhams Auction House 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.
Distinctions and honors
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 Pete Sampras (14), Roger Federer (13), 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 has managed to achieve this double since, and Nadal and Andre Agassi are the only male players since Borg to have won the French Open and Wimbledon men's singles titles over their career.
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 five 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. Borg chose to play the Australian Open only once, in 1974, where he lost in the third round. Chris Evert, a contemporary of Borg, has pointed out that skipping Grand Slam tournaments was not unusual then, before counting Grand Slam titles became the norm. (During Borg's career, the Australian Open was the last Grand Slam tournament of each year.)
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 two-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 topspin, 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 as 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 intro to Borg's autobiography My Life and Game, Eugene Scott relates that this myth arose from a medial 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.
Career singles titles (100)
Singles titles listed on the ATP website (63)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score | | 1. | 1974 | London WCT, England | Hard (i) | Mark Cox | 6–7, 7–6, 6–4 | | 2. | 1974 | Sao Paulo WCT, Brazil (1) | Hard (i) | Arthur Ashe | 6–2, 3–6, 6–3 | | 3. | 1974 | Rome, Italy (1) | Clay | Ilie Nastase | 6–3, 6–4, 6–2 | | 4. | 1974 | French Open, Paris (1) | Clay | Manuel Orantes | 2–6, 6–7, 6–0, 6–1, 6–1 | | 5. | 1974 | Båstad, Sweden (1) | Clay | Adriano Panatta | 6–3, 6–0, 6–7, 6–3 | | 6. | 1974 | Boston, U.S. (1) | Clay | Tom Okker | 7–6, 6–1, 6–1 | | 7. | 1974 | Adelaide, Australia | Grass | Onny Parun | 6–4, 6–4 3–6, 6–2 | | 8. | 1975 | Richmond WCT, U.S. (1) | Carpet | Arthur Ashe | 4–6, 6–4, 6–4 | | 9. | 1975 | Bologna WCT, Italy | Carpet | Arthur Ashe | 7–6, 4–6, 7–6 | | 10. | 1975 | French Open, Paris (2) | Clay | Guillermo Vilas | 6–2, 6–3, 6–4 | | 11. | 1975 | Boston, U.S. (2) | Clay | Guillermo Vilas | 6–3, 6–4, 6–2 | | 12. | 1975 | Barcelona, Spain (1) | Clay | Adriano Panatta | 1–6, 7–6, 6–3, 6–2 | | 13. | 1976 | Toronto Indoor WCT, Canada | Carpet | Vitas Gerulaitis | 2–6, 6–3, 6–1 | | 14. | 1976 | Sao Paulo WCT, Brazil (2) | Carpet | Vitas Gerulaitis | 7–6, 6–2 | | 15. | 1976 | Dallas WCT, U.S. – WCT Finals | Carpet | Guillermo Vilas | 1–6, 6–1, 7–5, 6–1 | | 16. | 1976 | Düsseldorf, West Germany | Clay | Manuel Orantes | 6–2, 6–2, 6–0 | | 17. | 1976 | Wimbledon, London (1) | Grass | Ilie Nastase | 6–4, 6–2, 9–7 | | 18. | 1976 | Boston, U.S. (3) | Clay | Harold Solomon | 6–7, 6–4, 6–1, 6–2 | | 19. | 1977 | Memphis, U.S. | Carpet | Brian Gottfried | 6–4, 6–3, 4–6, 7–5 | | 20. | 1977 | Nice, France (1) | Clay | Guillermo Vilas | 6–4, 1–6, 6–2, 6–0 | | 21. | 1977 | Monte Carlo WCT, Monaco (1) | Clay | Corrado Barazzutti | 6–3, 7–5, 6–0 | | 22. | 1977 | Denver, U.S. | Carpet | Brian Gottfried | 7–5, 6–2 | | 23. | 1977 | Wimbledon, London (2) | Grass | Jimmy Connors | 3–6, 6–2, 6–1, 5–7, 6–4 | | 24. | 1977 | Boca Raton – Pepsi Grand Slam (1) | Clay | Jimmy Connors | 6–4, 5–7, 6–3 | | 25. | 1977 | Madrid, Spain | Clay | | 6–3, 6–0, 6–7, 7–6 | | 26. | 1977 | Barcelona, Spain (2) | Clay | Manuel Orantes | 6–2, 7–5, 6–2 | | 27. | 1977 | Basel, Switzerland | Carpet | | 6–4, 6–2, 6–3 | | 28. | 1977 | Cologne, West Germany | Carpet | | 2–6, 7–5, 6–3 | | 29. | 1977 | Wembley, England | Hard | | 6–4, 6–4, 6–3 | | 30. | 1978 | Birmingham WCT, U.S. | Carpet | Dick Stockton | 7–6, 7–5 | | 31. | 1978 | Boca Raton – Pepsi Grand Slam (2) | Clay | Jimmy Connors | 7–6, 3–6, 6–1 | | 32. | 1978 | Las Vegas, U.S. – WCT Tournament of Champions | Hard | Vitas Gerulaitis | 6–5, 5–6, 6–4, 6–5 | | 33. | 1978 | Milan WCT, Italy | Carpet | Vitas Gerulaitis | 6–3, 6–3 | | 34. | 1978 | Rome, Italy (2) | Clay | Adriano Panatta | 1–6, 6–3, 6–1, 4–6, 6–3 | | 35. | 1978 | French Open, Paris (3) | Clay | Guillermo Vilas | 6–1, 6–1, 6–3 | | 36. | 1978 | Wimbledon, London (3) | Grass | Jimmy Connors | 6–2, 6–2, 6–3 | | 37. | 1978 | Båstad, Sweden (2) | Clay | Corrado Barazzutti | 6–1, 6–2 | | 38. | 1978 | Tokyo Indoor, Japan (1) | Carpet | Brian Teacher | 6–3, 6–4 | | 39. | 1979 | Richmond WCT, U.S. (2) | Carpet | Guillermo Vilas | 6–3, 6–1 | | 40. | 1979 | Boca Raton – Pepsi Grand Slam (3) | Hard | Jimmy Connors | 6–2, 6–3 | | 41. | 1979 | Rotterdam, Netherlands | Carpet | John McEnroe | 6–4, 6–2 | | 42. | 1979 | Monte Carlo, Monaco (2) | Clay | Vitas Gerulaitis | 6–2, 6–1, 6–3 | | 43. | 1979 | Las Vegas, U.S. (1) | Hard | Jimmy Connors | 6–3, 6–2 | | 44. | 1979 | French Open, Paris (4) | Clay | Víctor Pecci | 6–3, 6–1, 6–7, 6–4 | | 45. | 1979 | Wimbledon, London (4) | Grass | Roscoe Tanner | 6–7, 6–1, 3–6, 6–3, 6–4 | | 46. | 1979 | Båstad, Sweden (3) | Clay | Balázs Taróczy | 6–1, 7–5 | | 47. | 1979 | Toronto, Canada | Hard | John McEnroe | 6–3, 6–3 | | 48. | 1979 | Palermo, Italy | Clay | Corrado Barazzutti | 6–4, 6–0, 6–4 | | 49. | 1979 | Tokyo Indoor, Japan (2) | Carpet | Jimmy Connors | 6–2, 6–2 | | 50. | 1979 | Montreal, Canada – WCT Challenge Cup | Carpet | Jimmy Connors | 6–4, 6–2, 2–6, 6–4 | | 51. | 1979 | Masters, New York (1) | Carpet | Vitas Gerulaitis | 6–2, 6–2 | | 52. | 1980 | Salisbury, Maryland, U.S. – WCT Invitational | Carpet | Vijay Amritraj | 7–5, 6–1, 6–3 | | 53. | 1980 | Boca Raton, U.S. – Pepsi Grand Slam (4) | Hard | Vitas Gerulaitis | 6–1, 5–7, 6–1 | | 54. | 1980 | Nice, France (2) | Clay | Manuel Orantes | 6–2, 6–0, 6–1 | | 55. | 1980 | Monte Carlo, Monaco (3) | Clay | Guillermo Vilas | 6–1, 6–0, 6–2 | | 56. | 1980 | Las Vegas, U.S. (2) | Hard | Harold Solomon | 6–3, 6–1 | | 57. | 1980 | French Open, Paris (5) | Clay | Vitas Gerulaitis | 6–4, 6–1, 6–2 | | 58. | 1980 | Wimbledon, London (5) | Grass | John McEnroe | 1–6, 7–5, 6–3, 6–7, 8–6 | | 59. | 1980 | Stockholm, Sweden | Carpet | John McEnroe | 6–3, 6–4 | | 60. | 1980 | Masters, New York (2) | Carpet | Ivan Lendl | 6–4, 6–2, 6–2 | | 61. | 1981 | French Open, Paris (6) | Clay | Ivan Lendl | 6–1, 4–6, 6–2, 3–6, 6–1 | | 62. | 1981 | Stuttgart Outdoor, West Germany | Clay | Ivan Lendl | 1–6, 7–6, 6–2, 6–4 | | 63. | 1981 | Geneva, Switzerland | Clay | Tomáš Šmíd | 6–4, 6–3 |
Singles titles not listed by the ATP, including invitational tournament titles (37)
Non-ATP, exhibition, invitational, or special events singles titles – draw at least eight players (10)
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| Year | Date | Tournament | Surface | Final Opponent | Final Result | Winners Prize |
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| 1973 | 30 January – 4 February | Helsinki Scandinavian Indoor Open Tennis Championships | Carpet | Jacek Niedzwiedzki | 6–3, 6–7, 6–3, 6–4 | | 1974 | 6 January–12 | Auckland New Zealand Open | Grass | Onny Parun | 6–4, 6–3, 6–1 | | 1974 | 28 January – 3 February | Oslo Scandinavian Indoor Open Tennis Championships | Carpet | Raymond Moore | 2–6, 6–4, 6–4, 6–1 | | 1978 | october 19-21 | Hamburg Rothenbaum TennisClub | Carpet | Wojtek Fibak | 6-1, 6-1 | | 1979 | September 28–30 | Marbella European Championships of Tennis | Clay | Adriano Panatta | 6–2, 6–2, 7–5 | | 1979 | November 26-29 | Milan – Brooklyn Masters Tennis Tournament | Carpet | John McEnroe | 1–6, 6–1, 6–4 | | 1979 | 29 Nov-Dec 2 | Frankfurt Cup Invitational Tennis Tournament Round Robin | Carpet | Jimmy Connors | 6–3, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 | | 1981 | October 12-15 | Edmonton – Challenge Cup | Carpet | José Luis Clerc | 6–2, 6–2, 7–5 | | 1984 | May 10-13 | Osaka Gunze World Tennis | Carpet | Bill Scanlon | 6-2, 6-2 | | 1985 | May 12-15 | Kobe & Tokyo Gunze World Tennis | Carpet | Anders Järryd | 6-4, 6-3 |
Non-ATP, exhibition, invitational, or special events singles titles – draw fewer than eight players (27)
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| Year | Date | Tournament | Surface | Final Opponent | Final Result | Winners Prize |
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| 1976 | Sept 14-16 | Guadalajara, Jalisco Round Robin | Clay | Ilie Nastase | 6–3, 6–3 | | 1976 | Sept 17-19 | Mexico Marlboro Round Robin | Clay | Ilie Nastase | 7-6, 0-6, 6-1 | | 1976 | 11 Oct–15 | Hilton Head World Invitational Tennis Classic | Clay | Arthur Ashe | 6–1, 6–2 | | 1976 | Nov 3-5 | Chicago Stadium Invitational | Carpet | John Newcombe | Unknown score | | 1976 | Nov 6-7 | Detroit Michigan Pro Tennis 4-men invitational | Carpet | Rod Laver | 6–3, 6–1 | | 1976 | 24 Nov–28 | Copenhagen Pondus Cup Invitational Round Robin | Carpet | Wojtek Fibak | 7–5, 3–6, 7–6, 7–5 | | 1977 | 27 Sep–30 | Hilton Head World Invitational Tennis Classic | Clay | Roscoe Tanner | 6–4, 7–5 | | 1978 | 7 Mar–9 | Goteborg Scandinavian Cup | Carpet | Vitas Gerulaitis | 6–4, 1–6, 6–3 | | 1978 | 18 Apr–20 | Copenhagen Pondus Cup Invitational | Carpet | Vitas Gerulaitis | 2–6, 6–4, 6–4 | | 1978 | 21 Apr–23 | Tokyo Suntory Cup | Carpet | Jimmy Connors | 6–1, 6–2 | | 1978 | Aug 14-15 | Menton French Riviera Invitational | Clay | Guillermo Vilas | 6-4, 6-3 | | 1978 | Aug 16-17 | Frejus Arena Trophy | Clay | Guillermo Vilas | 7-6, 7-5 | | 1978 | 16 Oct–18 | Essen Gruga Hall International | Clay | Vitas Gerulaitis | 6–3, 7–6 | | 1978 | 28 Oct–29 | Manila Smash tennis | Clay | Vitas Gerulaitis | 6–2, 7–6 | | 1978 | Nov 23-24 | Antwerp European Tennis Championships | Carpet | Tom Okker | 6–4, 6–3 | | 1979 | March 6-7 | Vienna Velo Cup Tennis – 4-men invitational | Carpet | John McEnroe | 3–6, 6–1, 6–4 | | 1979 | Sept 26–27 | Essen Gruga Hall International – 4-men invitational | Clay | Ilie Nastase | 6–1, 6–4 | | 1979 | 2 Oct–7 | Holland - 5 city (Final at Rotterdam) Roxy Tennis Round Robin – 5-men | Carpet | Eddie Dibbs | 6–3, 6–0 | | 1979 | Nov 24-25 | Brussels Belgian Cup – 4-men invitational | Carpet | Adriano Panatta | 6–1, 7–6 | | 1979 | Dec 14-16 | Cairo Egypt's First International Round Robin | Clay | Ismail El Shafei | 6–2, 6–3 | | 1980 | 8 March–9 | Stuttgart Cup-80 – 4-men invitational | Carpet | Adriano Panatta | 6–2, 5–7, 6–1 | | 1980 | Oct 25-26 | Berlin West Berlin Cup – 4-men invitational | Carpet | Vitas Gerulaitis | 7–6, 6–3 | | 1981 | 26 Jan–27 | Bologna – 4-men invitational | Carpet | José Luis Clerc | 6–7, 7–5, 7–6 | | 1982 | March 24-25 | Cascais – $68,000 4-men invitational | Carpet | Vitas Gerulaitis | 7–6, 6–1 | | 1982 | April 16-18 | Tokyo – $250,000 Suntory Cup | Carpet | Guillermo Vilas | 6–1, 6–2 | $110,000 | | 1982 | 30 April-1 May | Cairo Four Master Championships 4-men invitational | Clay | Peter McNamara | 6-1 6-4 | | 1982 | 5 Nov–7 | Sydney – Akai Gold Challenge Round Robin | Carpet | Ivan Lendl | 6–1, 6–4, 6–2 | |
Career singles runner-ups (24)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score | | 1. | 1973 | Monte Carlo, Monaco | Clay | Ilie Nastase | 6–4, 6–1, 6–2 | | 2. | 1973 | San Francisco, U.S. | Carpet | Roy Emerson | 5–7, 6–1, 6–4 | | 3. | 1973 | Stockholm, U.S. | Hard (i) | Tom Gorman | 6–3, 4–6, 7–6 | | 4. | 1973 | Buenos Aires, Argentina | Clay | Guillermo Vilas | 3–6. 6–7, 6–4, 6–6, RET. | | 5. | 1974 | Barcelona WCT, Spain | Carpet | Arthur Ashe | 6–4, 3–6, 6–3 | | 6. | 1974 | Houston, U.S. | Clay | Rod Laver | 7–6, 6–2 | | 7. | 1974 | Dallas WCT, U.S. – WCT Finals | Carpet | John Newcombe | 4–6, 6–3, 6–3, 6–2 | | 8. | 1974 | Indianapolis, U.S. | Clay | Jimmy Connors | 5–7, 6–3, 6–4 | | 9. | 1974 | Madrid, Spain | Clay | Ilie Nastase | 6–4, 5–7, 6–2, 4–6, 6–4 | | 10. | 1975 | Barcelona WCT, Spain | Carpet | Arthur Ashe | 7–6, 6–3 | | 11. | 1975 | Munich WCT, West Germany | Carpet | Arthur Ashe | 6–4, 7–6 | | 12. | 1975 | Dallas WCT, U.S. – WCT Finals | Carpet | Arthur Ashe | 3–6, 6–4, 6–4, 6–0 | | 13. | 1975 | Masters, Stockholm | Hard (i) | Ilie Nastase | 6–2, 6–2, 6–1 | | 14. | 1976 | Philadelphia WCT, U.S. | Carpet | Jimmy Connors | 7–6, 6–4, 6–0 | | 15. | 1976 | US Open, New York | Clay | Jimmy Connors | 6–4, 3–6, 7–6, 6–4 | | 16. | 1977 | Masters, New York | Carpet | Jimmy Connors | 6–4, 1–6, 6–4 | | 17. | 1978 | US Open, New York | Hard | Jimmy Connors | 6–4, 6–4, 6–2 | | 18. | 1979 | Dallas WCT, U.S. – WCT Finals | Carpet | John McEnroe | 7–5, 4–6, 6–2, 7–6 | | 19. | 1980 | Toronto, Canada | Hard | Ivan Lendl | 4–6, 5–4, RET. | | 20. | 1980 | US Open, New York | Hard | John McEnroe | 7–6, 6–1, 6–7, 5–7, 6–4 | | 21. | 1980 | Basel, Switzerland | Hard (i) | Ivan Lendl | 6–3, 6–2, 5–7, 0–6, 6–4 | | 22. | 1981 | Milan, Italy | Carpet | John McEnroe | 7–6, 6–4 | | 23. | 1981 | Wimbledon, London | Grass | John McEnroe | 4–6, 7–6, 7–6, 6–4 | | 24. | 1981 | US Open, New York | Hard | John McEnroe | 4–6, 6–2, 6–4, 6–3 |
Grand Slam and Masters singles tournament timeline
| Tournament | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | Career WR | Career Win–Loss |
|---|
| Grand Slam Tournaments | | Australian Open | A | 3R | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 1 | 1–1 | | French Open | 4R | W | W | QF | A | W | W | W | W | 6 / 8 | 49–2 | | Wimbledon | QF | 3R | QF | W | W | W | W | W | F | 5 / 9 | 51–4 | | US Open | 4R | 2R | SF | F | 4R | F | QF | F | F | 0 / 9 | 40–9 | | Win Ratio | 0 / 3 | 1 / 4 | 1 / 3 | 1 / 3 | 1 / 2 | 2 / 3 | 2 / 3 | 2 / 3 | 1 / 3 | 11 / 27 | N/A | | Win–Loss | 10–3 | 11–3 | 16–2 | 17–2 | 10–1 | 20–1 | 18–1 | 20–1 | 19–2 | N/A | 141–16 | | Year-End Championship | | The Masters1 | A | RR | F | A | F | A | W | W | A | 2 / 5 | 15–7 | | Year End Rankings | 18 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | N/A | N/A |
A = did not participate in the tournament
WR = the ratio of the number of won tournaments to the number of tournaments played
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 singles tournament records
- Borg's 11 Grand Slam singles titles out of 27 tournaments played gives him a male open era record 41 winning percentage. Margaret Court holds the record among all players.
- In Grand Slam singles tournaments, Borg's match record is 141–16, giving him an 89.8 winning percentage, better than any male player ever. The only other male players in the open era with winning percentages over 80 are Roger Federer (86.6), Rafael Nadal (86.1), Pete Sampras (84.2), Jimmy Connors (82.6), Ivan Lendl (81.9), John McEnroe (81.5), and Andre Agassi (80.9).
- Borg played in 16 Grand Slam singles finals, which as of the end of his career was a male record for the open era and second in tennis history only to Rod Laver's 17 finals. This record was broken by Lendl who played in 19 singles finals.
- Borg (1974–1981) and Sampras (1993–2000) won at least one Grand Slam singles title for eight consecutive years, an all-time men's record.
- Borg and Sampras have defeated 9 players in Grand Slam singles finals. Federer has defeated 10 players in Grand Slam Finals more than any other player in the history.
- Borg (1976-80 Wimbledon and the 1978-81 French Open) is the first player to have won two different Grand Slam singles tournaments at least four consecutive times. Federer has won two different Grand Slams five consecutive times (2003-07 Wimbledon and 2004-08 US Open).
- Borg (6 French Open and 5 Wimbledon), Sampras (7 Wimbledon and 5 US Open) and Federer (5 US Opens and 5 Wimbledons) are the only male players to have won two different Grand Slam singles tournaments at least five times.
- Borg's five Wimbledon singles titles is the second highest number of titles won by a male player since the abolition of the Challenge Round in 1922. Sampras won seven singles titles, the last of which was in 2000.
- Borg and Federer have won more consecutive Wimbledon singles titles (5) than any other male player under modern rules. Only William Renshaw won more consecutive singles titles (1881–86), but in Renshaw's day, the defending champion played only one match, the Challenge Round.
- Borg (1976–1981) and Federer (2003–2008) played in six consecutive Wimbledon singles finals, still a record since the abolition of the Challenge Round in 1922.
- Borg's 41 consecutive singles match winning streak at Wimbledon remains an all-time record. Federer has come closest to matching this, with a winning streak of 40 consecutive Wimbledon singles matches from 2003 through 2008, before being beaten by Nadal.
- Borg won more French Open singles titles (6) than any other male player in tennis history.
- Borg and Nadal won four consecutive French Open singles titles, the only players to do so, during the open era. Borg retired while on a winning streak of 28 consecutive matches at the French Open.
- Borg (1978–81), Lendl (1984–87), and Nadal (2005–08) played in four consecutive French Open singles finals, a men's open era record.
- Borg won the French Open singles title without losing a set in 1978 and 1980, and he was the last man to do so until Nadal in 2008.
- Borg is the only male player to have appeared in the singles finals of both the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year for four consecutive years (1978–81).
- Borg is the only male player to have won both the French Open and Wimbledon singles titles in the same year for three consecutive years (1978–80).
- During the open era, Borg was the first male to play in six finals of two different Grand Slam tournaments (6 at the French Open and 6 at Wimbledon). Later, Sampras appeared in at least seven finals of two different Grand Slam tournaments (7 at Wimbledon and 8 at the US Open).
- During the open era, Borg is the first player to win the same Grand Slam 6 times (6 French Open). Later, Sampras broke this record by winning 7 Wimbledon titles.
- During the open era, Borg is the first player to win at least 28 consecutive matches at two different Grand Slams (1978-1981 French Open and 1976-81 Wimbledon). Later, Federer broke this record by winning at least 34 consecutive matches at Wimbledon (2003-2008) and US Open (2004-2008).
- During the open era, Borg is the first player to appear in 3 Grand Slam Finals in a calendar year three different times in his career (1978, 1980-81). Later Federer broke this record by appearing in 3 Grand Slam Finals in a calendar year four different times in his career (2004, 2006-08).
Youngest to win
- In 1972, Borg became the youngest-ever winner of a Davis Cup match, at age 15.
- In 1974, one month before his 18th birthday, Borg became the youngest winner of the Italian Open. That record has since been broken.
- In 1974, only days after his 18th birthday, Borg became the youngest man ever to hold a Grand Slam singles title. He retained that distinction until another Swede, Mats Wilander, won the French Open in 1982.
- At 18, he was the youngest winner of the U.S. Professional Championships until Aaron Krickstein won in 1983.
- In 1976 at age 20, Borg became the youngest winner of Wimbledon during the open era until Boris Becker became the youngest Grand Slam winner of all time by taking Wimbledon at age 17 years, 7 months in 1985 (a record broken by Michael Chang who won the French Open when he was 17 years, 3 months in 1989).
- Borg won his 11th Grand Slam singles title in 1981 aged 25 years and 1 day, the youngest male to reach that number of titles. By comparison, Roger Federer won his 11th aged 25 years and 324 days; Pete Sampras won his 11th at almost age 27, Roy Emerson at age 30, and Rod Laver at age 31.
Match competition
- Borg compiled a 576–124 win–loss singles record, winning 82.29 percent of the matches he played. By comparison, Jimmy Connors won 81.96 percent, Ivan Lendl won 81.75 percent, John McEnroe won 81.66 percent, Pete Sampras won 77.44 percent, and Andre Agassi won 76.05 percent.
- Borg won 19 consecutive points on serve in the fifth set on two occasions: his 1980 Wimbledon final against McEnroe and his 1980 US Open quarterfinal against Roscoe Tanner.
Career winning streaks
- On the list of open era winning streaks, Borg is third (43 consecutive tour matches in 1978). The only other men with winning streaks of at least 40 matches are Guillermo Vilas (46), Ivan Lendl (44), John McEnroe (42), and Roger Federer (41).
- Borg previously held the record for most consecutive wins on grass, with 41 victories (all at Wimbledon). Federer, who customarily plays a lesser grass tournament in Halle in addition to Wimbledon, had his 65 match winning streak on grass (from 2003 through the 2008 Wimbledon final) ended by Rafael Nadal.
- Borg holds the Davis Cup record singles winning streak at 33 consecutive victories.
- Borg holds third place for most consecutive wins on clay, with 46 victories in 1977–79. Only Rafael Nadal with 81 and Vilas with 53 have won more consecutive clay court matches.
Miscellaneous
- Borg's 63 career titles as listed on the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) website places him fifth on that website's open era list behind Jimmy Connors (107), Ivan Lendl (94), John McEnroe (77), and Pete Sampras (64).
- Borg retired with US$ 3.6 million in career prize money, a record at the time.
- According to the match scores listed on the ATP website, Borg bageled his opponents (sets won 6–0) 116 times from 1973 through 1981, compared to Federer's 55 bagels from 1999 through the 2007 French Open.
- Borg was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987 at only 30 years of age.
- In 1999, Borg was elected the best Swedish sportsman ever by a jury in his home country. His tennis rivals included a pair of top ranked players: Mats Wilander (who won seven Grand Slam titles) and Stefan Edberg (who won six).
- In their only career match-up, Borg defeated Wilander in September 1981 in the first round of a tournament in Geneva, Switzerland. The score was 6–1, 6–1. Geneva was the last tournament that Borg won during his career.
- Borg won the Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal in 1974 and 1978, the latter being shared with alpine skier Ingemar Stenmark. They are the only men to have won this honor twice.
- Borg was well-known for his sleek signature line of Fila 'BJ' sportswear, particularly the pin-striped tennis shirts that became a trademark. Although Borg wore Fila throughout the world, he used different rackets and shoes for different parts of the world. In North America, he wore Tretorn sneakers and used a Bancroft Borg frame, while everywhere else it was the Donnay Allwood or Borg Pro, with Diadora Borg Elite shoes. There was superstition in what he wore, too. Borg always reverted to the traditional green pinstripe shirt for Wimbledon, no matter what other design he may have worn at the time.
See also
Bibliography
- John Barrett, editor, World of Tennis Yearbooks, London, from 1976 through 1983.
- Michel Sutter, Vainqueurs Winners 1946–2003, Paris, 2003. Sutter has attempted to list all tournaments meeting his criteria for selection beginning with 1946 and ending in the fall of 1991 . For each tournament, he has indicated the city, the date of the final, the winner, the runner-up, and the score of the final. A tournament is included in his list if: (1) the draw for the tournament included at least eight players (with a few exceptions, such as the Pepsi Grand Slam tournaments in the second half of the 1970s); and (2) the level of the tournaments was at least equal to the present day challenger tournaments. Sutter's book is probably the most exhaustive source of tennis tournament information since World War II, even though some professional tournaments held before the start of the open era are missing. Later, Sutter issued a second edition of his book, with only the players, their wins, and years for the 1946 through 27 April 2003, period.
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.
External links
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