Astounding.

[Paul Murphy]

Was speaking to a tennis coach recently, someone who would be classified as young.
I mentioned in conversation Bjorn Borg and his on-court approach in that he never gave an opponent an indication of his mental state and how that ice cool approach was viewed correctly as a weapon in the psychological battle.
To my astonishment the coach had never heard of Borg.
How can we have someone coaching kids who has never heard of one of the game's greats and worse still, was unaware of one of his greatest strengths, a strength which of course, remains relevant today.
I know coaches are there for the technical side of tennis but a little history on the game's great players should surely be on the menu too as well as teaching kids to keep their cool under pressure.

[Jack Romeo]

if he was born in the 80's and became aware of tennis in the 90's it is understandable that he wouldn't be familiar with borg. but borg is a legend and it is sort of shocking that he hasn't heard of him. when federer won his 5th wimbledon surely he must have heard the commentators mentioning borg's name, plus the fact that they kept showing borg in the audience. is he familiar with mcenroe or connors, though?

[Paul Murphy]

Originally Posted by Jack Romeo

if he was born in the 80's and became aware of tennis in the 90's it is understandable that he wouldn't be familiar with borg. but borg is a legend and it is sort of shocking that he hasn't heard of him. when federer won his 5th wimbledon surely he must have heard the commentators mentioning borg's name, plus the fact that they kept showing borg in the audience. is he familiar with mcenroe or connors, though?

Didn't ask. Too surprised about Borg.

[treblings]

tennis is a sport where players don´t care much about tradition and the history of our game. if you don´t believe me just read enough posts in his forum
imagine a golf pro not knowing who arnold palmer was

[Paul Murphy]

Originally Posted by treblings

tennis is a sport where players don´t care much about tradition and the history of our game. if you don´t believe me just read enough posts in his forum
imagine a golf pro not knowing who arnold palmer was

Hard to believe. I was too young for the heyday of Laver and Roselwall et al but because I am tennis fan I've made it my business to learn about them.
In Borg's case he's the perfect example of keeping one's cool on a tennis court and giving an opponent nothing.
That's worth teaching in my book.

[Herdsman76]

UYnfortunately, it's just a sign of the times. I'm sure if you asked him what "Super Saturday" was as it relates to Tennis, you would get a blank stare. To me and the rest of the older crowd, that was just yesterday and it was arguably one of the greatest days in tennis.

[Paul Murphy]

Originally Posted by Herdsman76

UYnfortunately, it's just a sign of the times. I'm sure if you asked him what "Super Saturday" was as it relates to Tennis, you would get a blank stare. To me and the rest of the older crowd, that was just yesterday and it was arguably one of the greatest days in tennis.

I wouldn't even say "arguably".
My favourite tournament, the USO, in my favourite era the 1980s, with names like Lendl, Connors, McEnroe, Navratilova, Evert Lloyd etc
What's not to like?
I'm just so glad I was around for it.

[treblings]

Originally Posted by Paul Murphy

Hard to believe. I was too young for the heyday of Laver and Roselwall et al but because I am tennis fan I've made it my business to learn about them.
In Borg's case he's the perfect example of keeping one's cool on a tennis court and giving an opponent nothing.
That's worth teaching in my book.

please tell me Roselwall is a typo
there are many fascinating books about the different eras in tennis that are worth reading.

[Limpinhitter]

Originally Posted by Jack Romeo

if he was born in the 80's and became aware of tennis in the 90's it is understandable that he wouldn't be familiar with borg. but borg is a legend and it is sort of shocking that he hasn't heard of him. when federer won his 5th wimbledon surely he must have heard the commentators mentioning borg's name, plus the fact that they kept showing borg in the audience. is he familiar with mcenroe or connors, though?

I wasn't born when Johnston, Tilden, Perry, Vines, Budge, Riggs, Kramer, and a few more Hall of Famer's won major championships but I know a bit about them.

[Paul Murphy]

Originally Posted by treblings

please tell me Roselwall is a typo
there are many fascinating books about the different eras in tennis that are worth reading.

How dare you doubt me!
Rosewall came to my school and I met him when I was 12.
Great man.

[Lionheart392]

That is pretty shocking. And sad.

[treblings]

Originally Posted by Paul Murphy

How dare you doubt me!
Rosewall came to my school and I met him when I was 12.
Great man.

i envy you that experience i listened to some interviews that are available on youtube and he seems to be true class off court as well as on court

[pc1]

It's not surprising. A tennis coach doesn't have to know tennis history to teach tennis technique and skills. But it is a shame.

This isn't uncommon. I have read stories of how famous baseball players are not familiar with baseball history.

I enjoy reading about the history of any top sport from chess, tennis, football, hockey, baseball, golf etc. It's nice to read about some of the fascinating things that has happened in that sport's history.

One negative about learning about tennis history is something I think a top former player expressed about Fred Perry and how they taught tennis in England. Apparently Fred Perry had an odd way of playing that was very wristy and was very hard to master. The tennis teachers in England tried to teach their players for years to play like Fred Perry and it really was too tough to learn. That was one of the explanations why a country that loves tennis like England couldn't produce a top caliber player of the level of Perry for years.

[Paul Murphy]

Originally Posted by treblings

i envy you that experience i listened to some interviews that are available on youtube and he seems to be true class off court as well as on court

I was clearly too young to fully appreciate it but I do remember the teachers in particular were very excited.
I remember a very nice, soft spoken and humble man and went home that day very impressed.

[El Diablo]

It's surprising, but Borg more than most players of his generation has simply disappeared. Yes, he turns up in the stands when a record of his is in jeopardy, but McEnroe is always around as a broadcaster, Connors coached Roddick for a short time, Vilas plays some masters events, etc.

[treblings]

Originally Posted by pc1

It's not surprising. A tennis coach doesn't have to know tennis history to teach tennis technique and skills. But it is a shame.

This isn't uncommon. I have read stories of how famous baseball players are not familiar with baseball history.

I enjoy reading about the history of any top sport from chess, tennis, football, hockey, baseball, golf etc. It's nice to read about some of the fascinating things that has happened in that sport's history.

One negative about learning about tennis history is something I think a top former player expressed about Fred Perry and how they taught tennis in England. Apparently Fred Perry had an odd way of playing that was very wristy and was very hard to master. The tennis teachers in England tried to teach their players for years to play like Fred Perry and it really was too tough to learn. That was one of the explanations why a country that loves tennis like England couldn't produce a top caliber player of the level of Perry for years.

I know that Perry was an excellent table tennis player, maybe that´s where the wristy play comes from.
imagine all the u.s. coaches trying to learn their youngsters to play like Jimmy Connors or the swedes trying to learn Stefan Edberg to play like Bjorn Borg,....,

[jaggy]

Didnt Chris Evert relay some similar story when she was playing a younger opponent and there were pics on the walls of previous champions and the younger girl didnt know any of them?

[pc1]

Originally Posted by treblings

I know that Perry was an excellent table tennis player, maybe that´s where the wristy play comes from.
imagine all the u.s. coaches trying to learn their youngsters to play like Jimmy Connors or the swedes trying to learn Stefan Edberg to play like Bjorn Borg,....,

Speaking of Table Tennis, did you know that Rod Laver won the Superstar Competition in the area of Table Tennis? It was ridiculously easy for him. I think he almost had a shutout in one of the games when his opponent's ping pong ball hit the tip of the table and won the point. I think the opponent was the Olympic Champion Bob Seagren. After that they banned tennis players from competing in Table Tennis.

[Limpinhitter]

Originally Posted by pc1

Speaking of Table Tennis, did you know that Rod Laver won the Superstar Competition in the area of Table Tennis? It was ridiculously easy for him. I think he almost had a shutout in one of the games when his opponent's ping pong ball hit the tip of the table and won the point. I think the opponent was the Olympic Champion Bob Seagren. After that they banned tennis players from competing in Table Tennis.

Laver also came in #2 in the bicycle race, to Joe Fraser.

[treblings]

Originally Posted by Limpinhitter

Laver also came in #2 in the bicycle race, to Joe Fraser.

must have been a fun competition. Fred Perry on the other hand was world champion in table tennis.maybe even a greater accomplishment