Borg's 5 Wimbledon Titles

[BGod]

At the end of the day, he won 5 in a row, but the results are intriguing:

6-4, 6-2, 9-7
3-6, 6-2, 6-1, 5-7, 6-4
6-2, 6-2, 6-3
6-7, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4
1-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-7, 8-6

Of the 5, 3 went to five sets including one down 1-2 against Roscoe Tanner.

Roger Federer's 5 consecutive titles in contrast seem more brisc:

7-6, 6-2, 7-6
4-6, 7-5, 7-6, 6-4
6-2, 7-6, 6-4
6-0, 7-6, 6-7, 6-3
7-6, 4-6, 7-6, 2-6, 6-2

I mean, he has the two straight set victories. One of his 4 setters had him win 3 straight sets and the other saw him take a 2-0 set lead and a bagel set.

The five set push came with him leading 2-1.

 

[kiki]

In between Ashe and Mc Enroe, there was no big serve and volleyer atop of the game to really threaten Borg at Wimbledon, because Newk was retired and Tanner was not that good.The top rivals for Borg were baseliners like Vilas and Connors and an all round player like Nastase or Gerulaitis.

We had to wait until Mc Enroe showed up in 1980.

That is proven by the fact that, other than Roscoe in the 1979 final, the hardest players for Borg to cope with were first round grass court specialists.

 

[borg number one]

Just looking at the finals, he beat two all time greats in three of those five (McEnroe and Connors). Connors, despite not being a serve and volleyer was still very good on grass at Wimbledon. In the other two, he beat Nastase and Tanner, who were both very dangerous grass courters. Tanner had an other worldy serve and Nastase even at 30 was an extremely good player at Wimbledon (or any surface). Meanwhile, when the grass was faster and the technology dynamics tilted in favor of big servers and great volleyers, he was still able to fight off big servers like Amaya, Gerulaitis and Amritraj during earlier rounds, while winning a record 41 matches in a row at Wimbledon. Playing McEnroe twice and Connors once in Wimbledon finals is extremely tough competition. He also won his first title without losing a set in 1976, after dispatching Nastase in the final (a 20 yr. old prodigy vs. a 30 yr. old great).

See John Barrett's take on Bjorn Borg:

Wimbledon 2014: Why SW19 has never seen a player to match five-time champion Bjorn Borg

Award-winning author, commentator and former player John Barrett says there has still not been a better match player than the enigma that is Bjorn Borg

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/wimbledon/10918249/Wimbledon-2014-Why-SW19-has-never-seen-a-player-to-match-five-time-champion-Bjorn-Borg.html

The enigmatic Bjorn Borg, cool and unflappable even in the deepest crisis, of which there were several, won the first five Championships of this decade with such sharp skill, such intense competitiveness, it was difficult to remember that with his heavily topspun groundstrokes, Western-gripped on the forehand and double-handed on the backhand, he was really a clay-court player.

Yet, four years earlier there had been a clue of what he might achieve on grass. In 1972, at the age of 16, Bjorn had won Wimbledon’s junior title from Britain’s Buster Mottram after trailing 2-5 in the final set. I remember speaking to him afterwards as we stood on the roof of the competitors’ tea room. I asked him what his ambition was. As he gazed out across the expanse of Wimbledon’s outside courts towards the spire of St Mary’s Church, he answered quietly to be the best player in the world. It was spoken without a trace of conceit, stated as a fact. Incredibly, within four short years he was.

Already the Italian and French champion in 1974, which were his first two important titles and won either side of his eighteenth birthday, he won a second French Open in 1975 and came to Wimbledon in 1976 as the No4 seed. In seven astonishing rounds he won the title without losing a set. He was only the fourth man to achieve that feat. It had been a devastating performance, built on the merits of a much-improved first serve, which was something he had been working on hard with his omnipresent coach, Lennart Bergelin, tremendous speed about the court and those piercing topspin groundstrokes that seemed glued to the lines every time an opponent was rash enough to risk an advance to the net.

 

[kiki]

Borg would be also tough in 1975 although he developed a more well rounded grass game by 1976 when Nastase helped him out to improve his serve.Borg paid back inmediately.beat Nasty in the finals...

Ashe not only played a masterpiece of strategy vs Connors, but also vs Borg in the QF.Ashe played him the very same way he had done in the WCT Finals a couple of moths earlier.

 

[borg number one]

That was a hot Wimbledon in 1976, when Borg won his first title without losing a set. What a way to win your first Wimbledon at just 20. John Barrett's article points to Borg's ability as a match player that set him apart at SW19.

 

[kiki]

Because of his great success at Roland Garros, Borg seldom played a preparation tournament for Wimbledon, did he? I cannot recall him playing the Queen´s or the other pre Wimbledon tournaments.

 

[Phoenix1983]

I've watched highlights of the 1979 final vs. Tanner and that seems to have been a very tough match for Borg, despite the fact that Tanner nowadays does not enjoy a particularly stellar reputation.

Tanner looked like the Goran or Roddick of his day - huge serve, which made him very difficult to beat when 'on', on grass. When Borg won that match in 5, he looked more relieved, as if he had risked his life and come through some great risky ordeal, rather than looking happy.

I guess my point is that Borg's opponents should not be underestimated even if not all are household names today.

 

[borg number one]

I've watched highlights of the 1979 final vs. Tanner and that seems to have been a very tough match for Borg, despite the fact that Tanner nowadays does not enjoy a particularly stellar reputation.

Tanner looked like the Goran or Roddick of his day - huge serve, which made him very difficult to beat when 'on', on grass. When Borg won that match in 5, he looked more relieved, as if he had risked his life and come through some great risky ordeal, rather than looking happy.

I guess my point is that Borg's opponents should not be underestimated even if not all are household names today.

Very true. Besides Connors twice, McEnroe, and Nastase in 76 in the finals, Borg had to face a red hot Roscoe Tanner who could bomb in serves. Tanner took out Jimmy Connors at Wimbledon while making the SF twice in '75 and '76 as well making that final in '79. Players like Amaya and Amritraj were also extremely tough at Wimbledon when they were "on". When Tanner was firing on all cylinders, he was dangerous. Here's Borg playing so well while beating Connors in straight sets in the '79 SF. He put on a clinic here. So even when he faced Tanner in the final, he had to go through Connors in the semi.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhsNNplZ0Uo

 

[kiki]

In the words of the phenomenal tale teller Dan Maskell...
" And when the bully american saved all of his three death penalties, the steeled arm of the young swede began to shake as it never did before"

Yeah, Roscoe was on a high cloud all through 1979.

 

[kiki]

Borg did play , except maybe Panatta, Ramirez, Orantes ,Newcombe and Kodes, all the great names of the 1970´s, from the QF: Nastase ( twice),Okker ( twice),Mc Enroe ( twice),Gerulaitis ( twice), Ashe ( once), Connors ( four times) as well as Ashe and Vilas, those last two once.He beat them all except Ashe and Mc Enroe ( once).He also beat Gene Mayer ( once) and Brian Gottfried ( twice) as well as Edmondson and Amritraj.

No one remembers the 75 Ashe/Borg QF, but it was just every bit of a tactical masterpiece from Ashe as his final vs Connors, just that he deployed different tactical variations.

 

[hoodjem]

Borg did play , except maybe Panatta, Ramirez, Orantes ,Newcombe and Kodes, all the great names of the 1970´s, from the QF: Nastase ( twice),Okker ( twice),Mc Enroe ( twice),Gerulaitis ( twice), Ashe ( once), Connors ( four times) as well as Ashe and Vilas, those last two once.He beat them all except Ashe and Mc Enroe ( once).He also beat Gene Mayer ( once) and Brian Gottfried ( twice) as well as Edmondson and Amritraj.

No one remembers the 75 Ashe/Borg QF, but it was just every bit of a tactical masterpiece from Ashe as his final vs Connors, just that he deployed different tactical variations.

So doesn't that make Ashe the last man to beat Borg at Wimbledon before Mac?

 

[kiki]

So doesn't that make Ashe the last man to beat Borg at Wimbledon before Mac?

Yeah, and the first one...before Mac five yrs later, to beat both Connors and Borg in the same major.

 

[hoodjem]

Ashe was a great tactician.

 

[kiki]

Borg´s story at the All England belongs to the epic genre.Thata is why I doubt there´s been a more loved champion there.The much coveted 1980 final has even overshadowed three matches that are to rate among the most spectacular seen there.

The 1979 final but also the incredible last days of the 1977 tournament.First, that match against Vitas, that has been so often considered as simply the best played in the very long history of Wimbledon.next, his final against Connors, whom he had never beaten before, at least in a big championship.Up to this day, I still ask myself what would have happened if Connors didn´t do that DF in the last set´s ninth game after overcoming a 0-4 in the fifth set....

 

[Mustard]

That was a hot Wimbledon in 1976, when Borg won his first title without losing a set.

Yes. It was the "long summer" in 1976, when droughts came to Britain.

I've watched highlights of the 1979 final vs. Tanner and that seems to have been a very tough match for Borg, despite the fact that Tanner nowadays does not enjoy a particularly stellar reputation.

Tanner looked like the Goran or Roddick of his day - huge serve, which made him very difficult to beat when 'on', on grass. When Borg won that match in 5, he looked more relieved, as if he had risked his life and come through some great risky ordeal, rather than looking happy.

I guess my point is that Borg's opponents should not be underestimated even if not all are household names today.

It was an extremely tough match for Borg. He twice went a set down, and after breaking Tanner's serve in the opening game of the fifth set, Tanner was threatening to break Borg for the rest of the set while dominating his own service games. When Borg served for the match and went up 40-0, Tanner came back to deuce, and there was definite fear on the usually expressionless face of Borg. Borg practically fell over the finish line.

I actually prefer this match to the following year's final.

 

[kiki]

Tanner usually spelled big trouble for Borg, even if Borg won most of their matches and some even very one sided

But Tanner was the only man to take a set off the swede during his exceptional Roland Garros in 1978.

Roscoe also defeated the swede at the US pro Indoor QF that same year and, of course, one year later defeated Borg at the USO.

The Flushing Meadows courts watched three consecutive Borg/Tanner quarters, from 79 to 81: Borg won the last two but always very very tight matches.

I think Tanner always got hyped up when playing Borg or Connors.As well as Lendl.

 

[borg number one]

Yes, Borg said of Tanner that when he got his serve going, he was very difficult to stop. Those courts were fast too, whether it was indoors, hard courts, or at Wimbledon. At the U.S. Open, that 1979 match was before they upgraded the lights. Before the tourney Bergelin had complained about the quality. Borg liked to get back on the return especially against Tanner. Before the newer lights at the Open, it could get tricky, especially if you are returning a Tanner serve with a Bancroft Borg. Tanner was dangerous even back in 1976. On Borg's run to that Wimbledon title, he beat Tanner in the semis in straight sets. In the QF, Tanner had upset Connors in straight sets. So, they had that history at Wimbledon. Tanner played some great tennis at the Open too over the years. That top 10 by 1980 was great.

 

[kiki]

After barely surviving Roscoe´s serve at their 1980 Wimbly quarter final match, the best returner of the world, James Scott Connors first words, just two minutes after the match ended was interviewed on court.He just said " when he gets into those streaks, he is completely bruttal...the only thing to do is just wait if and until it vanishes"

 

[borg number one]

After barely surviving Roscoe´s serve at their 1980 Wimbly quarter final match, the best returner of the world, James Scott Connors first words, just two minutes after the match ended was interviewed on court.He just said " when he gets into those streaks, he is completely bruttal...the only thing to do is just wait if and until it vanishes"

His service motion was awesome to watch.

 

[borg number one]

Borg vs. Nastase in the 1976 Wimbledon final.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqJhkDYCvD4

Good article on the 1980 Wimbledon final:

http://www.insidetennis.com/2009/01/mcenroe-borg-1980-wimbledon/

1.BUILD-UP: Massive. The two had never faced off in a Slam before (Borg owned a 4-3 edge going in) and some thought that the cocky ‘79 U.S. Open champ McEnroe and his net-loving style would be the man to finally take down the Swedish backboard. The crossover celebs were treated “like rock stars,” said Mary Carillo.
Nearly every expert of note was asked to weigh in on who would come out on top and after watching Borg beat the odds from the backcourt for four consecutive years, most were convinced the Swede would win a then record five straight. “When somebody finally beats Borg at Wimbledon,” noted Erik van Dillen, “it’s automatically going to be one of the biggest single-match wins of the century.” (A+)

THE WOW FACTOR: It was the match that shook the world and put both men in another stratosphere of celebrity. Partly due to the Olympic boycott, nothing that summer came close to its impact. When Mac arrived back in Douglaston, letters flooded his parents’ home, some addressed to “John McEnroe, USA.” Rock n’ roller Eddie Money asked him to come on stage to play the tambourine at a Central Park concert. “There was an incredible allure. There was a sense of tremendous excitement,” McEnroe said.
Borg’s celebrity was already over the top in Europe, but it soared when he arrived in North America for the summer hard-court season.
“He no longer belongs to himself. He can no longer say yes or no when he pleases,” Simionescu complained.

 

[kiki]

Borg was obviously cutting down his schedule by 1980.That is, when he was still the undisputed monarch of the game.So, Jmac dethroning him may have some influence but is a marginal reason to explain his early retirement.

 

[Rock Strongo]

I still find it very fascinating that for 38 years, no man has won Wimbledon without dropping a single set.

 

[borg number one]

I still find it very fascinating that for 38 years, no man has won Wimbledon without dropping a single set.

Me too. Borg did that with his first title and first final at 20. He had spent many hours practicing his serve at the Cumberland Club's private courts before that tournament and it paid off.

 

[kiki]

His most difficult early tournament stages were 1977 (Edmondson) and 1979, dropping sets to Amritraj,Gorman and Teacher as well as that 5 setter against Tanner.

I´d say 1979 was the tougher one in the earlier stages.

 

[DariaGT]

Borg could have won 10 Wimbys on 100% Rye than fast grass vs S&V opponents as proven
in the last 2 decades by Nadal, Hewitt, Murray and Djokovic staying on the baseline.
Even a younger Kuerten could have done well on Rye only Wimby and extra felt balls.

In the 90s fast grass era Fed not facing Sampras, Stich, Rafter, Krajicek could have won 6-10
but his BH grip and complex swing was not suited for low bouncing grass compared to 100% rye.
Old retired Piston Pete far from his heyday even beat a peak Fed in a tight exhibition match and
Petes simpler clinical strokes were also the reason clay wins were an issue compared to HCs.

In the Borg era Sampras could have won 10 wimby titles swinging a pin head sized racquet.

 

[Mustard]

Wasn't the Kooyong grass at the Australian Open 100% Rye? To my eyes, it certainly seems very similar to today's Wimbledon grass on a sunny day.

Borg didn't play long enough to win Wimbledon 10 times, really.

 

[Martin J]

Wasn't the Kooyong grass at the Australian Open 100% Rye? To my eyes, it certainly seems very similar to today's Wimbledon grass on a sunny day.

Borg didn't play long enough to win Wimbledon 10 times, really.

During the Živojinović - McEnroe match at the 1985 AO QF, the Yugoslav commentator mentioned how the conditions (a slower surface and a higher bounce) don't suit Becker's (who just appeared on the screen) game, unlike at Wimbledon, where it is faster/less bouncy. Becker lost in his very first match at that AO.
It could be that the hot weather makes the bounce there consistently higher than in London. Which makes me wonder how many AOs could've Borg won had he chosen to play. He said that he had many doubters after his 1976 win (without losing a set) because the weather was unusually hot and the bounce was pretty high. Those doubters went quiet after he won the tournament in 1977, during a rainy weather with a fairly skiddy grass.