Jimmy Connors wonders whatever happened to 'killer instinct'

[thor's hammer]

"Killer instinct — that's almost taboo now," he says. "The sport has changed. Attitudes have changed. They all want to win, but how much?"

Link to full article

Connors On His Blowups (Video)

[Mick]

probably because the top players aren't americans. players from other countries prefer not to expose their killer instincts when they complete like mcenroe, connors, ... serena would

[pmerk34]

Originally Posted by thor's hammer

"Killer instinct — that's almost taboo now," he says. "The sport has changed. Attitudes have changed. They all want to win, but how much?"

Link to full article

Connors On His Blowups (Video)

Connors has been saying this for the last 20 years. Just because a lot of players do not have visible disdain for their opponents doesn't mean they lack killer instinct. Nadal apologized to Roger after destroying him in the 2008 French Open. But the reality is he probabaly wanted to triple bagel him

[mad dog1]

Originally Posted by Mick

probably because the top players aren't americans. players from other countries prefer not to expose their killer instincts when they complete like mcenroe, connors, ... serena would

Jimbo is talking specifically about the lack of killer instinct in American players.

[pmerk34]

Originally Posted by mad dog1

Jimbo is talking specifically about the lack of killer instinct in American players.

He's still wrong, the top American players have flaws that keep them from winning slams not mental problems. Yeah Connors was a fiery competitor, so what. He also had the best return of serve and the best BH in the game for a long while not to mention awesome footwork and endurance. If he didn't have these other attributes his will to win would still resulted in losses

[mad dog1]

"Interesting, isn't it?" Jimmy Connors says Wednesday morning. "From domination to frustration."

Once, American men regularly held all but one or two spots in the world top 10 rankings, thanks to a tennis boom Connors helped launch. Now he wonders if this country will ever again produce players with the "desire" and the "killer instinct" it takes to be great.

"Killer instinct — that's almost taboo now," he says. "The sport has changed. Attitudes have changed. They all want to win, but how much?"

The sad state of men's tennis in this country is just one of the many topics Connors addressed in our 45-minute conversation.

.....


He laments the social trends that have driven an entire generation indoors to a life of "obesity and computers and no exercise and diabetes."

[Mustard]

Jimmy Connors was one of a kind in the "killer instinct" department. He does, however, have a point in regards to modern day American tennis players. The fact is that Europe rule the roost now when it comes to tennis domination.

[BeHappy]

Originally Posted by Mustard

Jimmy Connors was one of a kind in the "killer instinct" department. He does, however, have a point in regards to modern day American tennis players. The fact is that Europe rule the roost now when it comes to tennis domination.

Borg didn't need to shout and swear to basically destroy Jimmy Connor's career while he was active.

[pmerk34]

Originally Posted by BeHappy

Borg didn't need to shout and swear to basically destroy Jimmy Connor's career while he was active.

I wouldn't say he destroyed Connors career

[Mustard]

Originally Posted by BeHappy

Borg didn't need to shout and swear to basically destroy Jimmy Connor's career while he was active.

LOL. Are you joking? Connors was still playing full-time into his 40s, while Borg was burned out in his mid-20s.

[BeHappy]

Originally Posted by Mustard

LOL. Are you joking? Connors was still playing full-time into his 40s, while Borg was burned out in his mid-20s.

That's why I added 'while [borg] he was active'.

Didn't really worked for Connors against Borg either. Who had the better career, Nastase or Borg? Probably equally talented.

Connors knows this, he's just promoting his seniors matches and this is an easy way to get into the media, and at the same time remind everyone how exciting his matches are.

[mad dog1]

i think there's a number of reasons why americans aren't winning any longer - some of them are a sense of entitlement, instant gratification, and too many choices which leads to distractions.

look at MLB. so many of the stars come from poor nations such as the Dominican Republic, Mexico, etc. there's no sense of entitlement in these countries. there's no such thing as instant gratification there where baseball is seen as their only chance to get out of their impoverish situation. because many of the ball players are from poor families some of who can barely afford to feed and cloth their families, they certainly can't afford PS3, Xbox, Wii, iPads, etc so for entertainment, the kids focus all their time playing baseball. so from a very young age, these kids spend every afternoon and all weekend on the baseball diamond. they see their heroes who are now stars in MLB which only fuels their desire and passion to try harder to improve.

kids in the US? there's too many choices, too many distractions and way too many luxuries have made them soft. if they get bored or arent' good enough at baseball, they can try basketball or football or something else. and if they aren't good enough at that? who cares? playing Wii, PS3 is just as much fun and easier and parents are very willing to buy this stuff for their kids.

you see the same thing happening with basketball and football. a lot of the NBA stars come from impoverished families from the inner city.

it's no surprise that the are so many serbians, another war torn country, close to the top in tennis. think about this...americans get in their car and drive everywhere. we barely ever walk anywhere. europeans do alot more walking and don't drive nearly as much. while they're walking, burning off calories and building muscles/endurance, americans are sitting in their cars in traffic, eating fast food, gaining weight and losing fitness. europeans have a better fitness base to build from starting from a very early age.

adversity builds character. adversity pushes the human spirit to strive for and achieve more. adversity encourages us to push the boundaries. it's through adversity that we learn about who we are and what we're made of. right now even in this economic recession, life is too easy and comfortable compared to what people in lesser developed countries have to go through every day.

[Mustard]

Originally Posted by BeHappy

That's why I added 'while [borg] he was active'.

Didn't really worked for Connors against Borg either. Who had the better career, Nastase or Borg? Probably equally talented.

Connors knows this, he's just promoting his seniors matches and this is an easy way to get into the media, and at the same time remind everyone how exciting his matches are.

Despite his losing head-to-head, Connors has beaten Borg in two US Open finals, a US Open semi final and a Masters final. I should also mention that Connors in 1982 was an improved player, especially on serve.

[pmerk34]

Originally Posted by mad dog1

i think there's a number of reasons why americans aren't winning any longer - some of them are a sense of entitlement, instant gratification, and too many choices which leads to distractions.

look at MLB. so many of the stars come from poor nations such as the Dominican Republic, Mexico, etc. there's no sense of entitlement in these countries. there's no such thing as instant gratification there where baseball is seen as their only chance to get out of their impoverish situation. because many of the ball players are from poor families some of who can barely afford to feed and cloth their families, they certainly can't afford PS3, Xbox, Wii, iPads, etc so for entertainment, the kids focus all their time playing baseball. so from a very young age, these kids spend every afternoon and all weekend on the baseball diamond. they see their heroes who are now stars in MLB which only fuels their desire and passion to try harder to improve.

kids in the US? there's too many choices, too many distractions and way too many luxuries have made them soft. if they get bored or arent' good enough at baseball, they can try basketball or football or something else. and if they aren't good enough at that? who cares? playing Wii, PS3 is just as much fun and easier and parents are very willing to buy this stuff for their kids.

you see the same thing happening with basketball and football. a lot of the NBA stars come from impoverished families from the inner city.

it's no surprise that the are so many serbians, another war torn country, close to the top in tennis.

adversity builds character. adversity pushes the human spirit to strive for and achieve more. adversity encourages us to push the boundaries. it's through adversity that we learn about who we are and what we're made of.

Yes where they all grow up with xbox and ps3 as well.

[TennezSport]

Originally Posted by mad dog1

i think there's a number of reasons why americans aren't winning any longer - some of them are a sense of entitlement, instant gratification, and too many choices which leads to distractions.

look at MLB. so many of the stars come from poor nations such as the Dominican Republic, Mexico, etc. there's no sense of entitlement in these countries. there's no such thing as instant gratification there where baseball is seen as their only chance to get out of their impoverish situation. because many of the ball players are from poor families some of who can barely afford to feed and cloth their families, they certainly can't afford PS3, Xbox, Wii, iPads, etc so for entertainment, the kids focus all their time playing baseball. so from a very young age, these kids spend every afternoon and all weekend on the baseball diamond. they see their heroes who are now stars in MLB which only fuels their desire and passion to try harder to improve.

kids in the US? there's too many choices, too many distractions and way too many luxuries have made them soft. if they get bored or arent' good enough at baseball, they can try basketball or football or something else. and if they aren't good enough at that? who cares? playing Wii, PS3 is just as much fun and easier and parents are very willing to buy this stuff for their kids.

you see the same thing happening with basketball and football. a lot of the NBA stars come from impoverished families from the inner city.

it's no surprise that the are so many serbians, another war torn country, close to the top in tennis.

adversity builds character. adversity pushes the human spirit to strive for and achieve more. adversity encourages us to push the boundaries. it's through adversity that we learn about who we are and what we're made of. right now even in this economic recession, life is too easy and comfortable compared to what people in lesser developed countries have to go through every day.

We see this all the time. Just recently we were asked to work with one of the Universities in the area and out of all of their players there was only one American. When we asked why only one American, the reply was the American players didn't really want to work as hard and didn't qualify. The hunger just wasn't there.

Cheers, TennezSport

[mad dog1]

Originally Posted by pmerk34

Yes where they all grow up with xbox and ps3 as well.

thanks for your valuable contribution. you can go back to playing xbox and ps3 now.

[mad dog1]

Originally Posted by TennezSport

We see this all the time. Just recently we were asked to work with one of the Universities in the area and out of all of their players there was only one American. When we asked why only one American, the reply was the American players didn't really want to work as hard and didn't qualify. The hunger just wasn't there.

Cheers, TennezSport

thx. as a society, we have gotten too soft. it's all part of the rise and fall of empires. the same thing happened to the roman and british empires.

[heftylefty]

MadDog, there is a lot of validity to what you said, but I don't there were many missed meals at the Federer household. And they product a GOAT.

You don't need to be in dire straits to produce hunger. Having the right tools, at the right time is a factor also. I was one of those kids that spent hours on the basketball court. I was living in a neighborhood that was pretty tough with a ton of guys that went on to DI and a few Pros in Football, Basketball and Baseball. Not too many guys spent as much time as me working their game, but I was not as nearly as good as the guys in my hood. My coordination and balance didn't come in until my mid 20's. By then I took up tennis because I wanted to compete in a sport I didn't have to worry about making a team to play.

Tools without the Hunger is a waste. But hunger with the Tools, is a tough row to hoe.

[mad dog1]

heftylefty, my explanation was more general and obviously doesn't apply to every single person. i wasn't trying to write a graduate thesis that covers every possible scenario. there will always be those exceptions because people are individuals and individuals are unique. and yes, obviously if you don't have enough talent, you're not going to get to the top of the game regardless of what environment you grow up in. i can certainly agree w/ you there.

[SoCal10s]

looks like Jimbo wants a USTA job like Pat Mc.. and he should get it.. maybe wake some ol school farts up..