Match Stats/Report - Borg vs Tanner, WITC rubber, 1977

[Waspsting]

Bjorn Borg beat Roscoe Tanner 6-4, 7-5 in the World Invitational Tennis Classic rubber, 1977 on green clay in Hilton Head, South Carolina, USA

The event featured 8 players (4 men, 4 women) playing a combination of singles and doubles matches with a points system to determine the winner. First prize was $50,000. Borg was the defending champion. Virginia Wade would win the event

Borg won 71 points, Tanner 56

Tanner serve-volleyed off all but 3 first serves

(Note: I’m missing 2 games - 1 on each players serve. Per commentary, both were holds
4 points have been added to both players tallies - i.e. as though both games were to love, which is unconfirmed)

Serve Stats
Borg...
- 1st serve percentage (43/64) 67%
- 1st serve points won (27/43) 63%
- 2nd serve points won (11/21) 52%
- Aces 2
- Double Faults 1
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (12/64) 19%

Tanner...
- 1st serve percentage (27/55) 49%
- 1st serve points won (20/27) 74%
- 2nd serve points won (6/28) 21%
- Aces 4, Service Winners 1
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (11/55) 20%

Serve Patterns
Borg served...
- to FH 19%
- to BH 76%
- to Body 5%

Tanner served...
- to FH 25%
- to BH 56%
- to Body 18%

Return Stats
Borg made...
- 44 (29 FH, 15 BH), including 13 runaround FHs
- 6 Errors, comprising...
- 2 Unforced (2 FH), both runaround FHs
- 4 Forced (4 FH)
- Return Rate (44/55) 80%

Tanner made...
- 51 (16 FH, 35 BH), including 4 runaround FHs & 3 return-approaches
- 1 Winner (1 FH)
- 10 Errors, all unforced...
- 10 Unforced (4 FH, 6 BH), including 1 runaround FH & 1 return-approach attempt
- Return Rate (51/63) 81%

Break Points
Borg 5/5
Tanner 3/6 (4 games)

Winners (including returns, excluding serves)
Borg 10 (2 FH, 6 BH, 1 FHV, 1 BHV)
Tanner 21 (3 FH, 4 BH, 8 FHV, 3 BHV, 3 OH)

Borg had 7 passes (2 FH, 5 BH) -
- FHs - 1 cc, 1 dtl/inside-out
- BHs - 2 cc, 2 dtl, 1 running-down-drop-shot cc at net

- regular BH - 1 cc

Tanner had 7 from serve-volley points -
- 5 first 'volleys' (3 FHV, 1 BHV, 1 FH at net)
- 2 second volleys (1 BHV, 1 OH)

- 2 from return-approach points (1 BHV, 1 OH)... the OH was on the bounce from behind service line - a retreated net point

- FHs - 1 inside-in return, 1 lob
- BHs - 2 cc, 1 dtl, 1 inside-out

Errors (excluding serves and returns)
Borg 19
- 11 Unforced (5 FH, 6 BH)
- 8 Forced (5 FH, 3 BH)... with 1 FH running-down-drop-shot at net
- Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 42.7

Tanner 45
- 33 Unforced (13 FH, 15 BH, 2 FHV, 3 BHV)... with 1 FH at net
- 12 Forced (6 FH, 3 BH, 1 FHV, 1 FH1/2V, 1 BHV)
- Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 45.5

(Note 1: All 1/2 volleys refer to such shots played at net. 1/2 volleys played from other parts of the court are included within relevant groundstroke numbers)

(Note 2: the Unforced Error Forcefulness Index is an indicator of how aggressive the average UE was. The numbers presented are keyed on 4 categories - 20 defensive, 40 neutral, 50 attacking and 60 winner attempt)

Net Points & Serve-Volley
Borg was...
- 12/14 (86%) at net, including...
- 1/1 serve-volleying, a 1st serve

Tanner was...
- 26/42 (62%) at net, including...
- 13/19 (68%) serve-volleying, all 1st serves
---
- 3/3 (100%) return-approaching
- 1/1 retreated

Match Report
Good match. Borg being typically wall like from baseline and Tanner with a low in count are 2 big outcome determinants. Borg’s better, but Tanner is good

Just 49% first serves in from Tanner (Borg, who mostly serves harmlessly, has 67%)
He leads first serve points won 74% to 63%, so the in count in vital

Ground UEs - Borg 11, Tanner 27. Evenly distributed across wings for both players
Predictable outcome and typical of Borg, but Tanner isn’t sloppy and rallies don’t just go on for awhile, but Tanner has Borg scampering and defending some too

Second serve points won read Borg 52%, Tanner 21%. The first figure gets to Tanner being good (or at least, not bad). The second figure to Borg being better. He returns second serves with typical consistency but not pushing Tanner back. Taken all together, its another manifestation of the UE counts

Tanner leads baseline to baseline winners 5-1. Wide drive BH cc is Tanner’s most effective weapon, though he push-slices the BH most often, struggling some with high bounce. His depth is excellent when playing non-slice groundies off both wings, and Borg, if not struggles, is tested in handling it, especially when balls wide too

Funny stat is Borg with 0 BH return errors. Tanner serves there 31 times or 56% of the time. 1 goes for an ace, draws 2 runaround FH returns, but not a single BH return error in sight

This is with Tanner serve-volleying 19 times 86% of first serves. Borg invariably moves to pay FH return whenever he can and has 13 runaround FHs + deals with Tanner’s 18% serves to body with FH and ends up with 29 FH returns to 15 BHs, despite Tanner serving more than double to BH than to FH and despite having 0 BH return errors

Borg’s iron returning + Tanner’s low in count + Tanner’s normal returning = the unreturned serves being virtually equal (Borg 19%, Tanner 20%). Bar brief period, Borg just rolling in first serve. In brief, 2-3 game period, he serves hard enough that one can readily tell difference between his 2 first serves, if not serves big firsts. Still, all 10 of Tanner’s return errors have been marked UEs. Routine returns, and almost all of them outside Borg’s slightly upped serving period

Freebies being virtually equal leaves match to be decided by court action. The UE gap is by far the biggest factor in how baseline action goes

 

[Waspsting]

In baseline rallies -
- Borg with 1 winner (a BH), 11 UEs (5 FH, 6 BH)
- Tanner with 5 winners (1 FH, 4 BH), 27 UEs (12 FH, 15 BH)
(both players force 1 error)

Balance of UEs across wings speaks to dual winged match. Borg plays cc shots off both wings as much as possible

Tanner’s drive BH cc is most potent shot on show. He’s got 2 winners with it, hits with power, often deep. Borg on the move doing well to resist giving up pressured errors. More often though, he push/drive slices (closer to push), when ball is not short and getting up to stomach or lower rib height. Such shots lack force and sooner or later, gives up the UE

FH cc isn’t as wide, but isn’t slow at least. Borg playing (by his standard) quite a few 2-handed slices himself (as opposed to favoured, well set looping BH cc with time to spare). Borg’s not rushed, but doesn’t have excess time to set up. One consequence is Tanner not having to face high FHs

Rallies are medium of length. Tanner occasionally gives up quick, routine UE, but usually manages to keep the rally going for awhile. More than that - he’s actually got Borg scampering, resisting, even defending some while he’s at it
As everyone gets outlasted by Borg, testing him some while so being is relatively good outcome. Not bad from Tanner

Net play is important too though. Borg passing better than Tanner volleys, and Borg passing particularly well

Tanner on the ‘volley’ has 15 winners, 6 UEs, 3 FEs
Borg on pass has 7 (2 FH, 5 BH) winners, 8 FEs (4 FH, 3 BH)

… with most of Tanner’s success product of strong first serve rather than volleying ability, getting back to his in count being problem. At mid match interview, he acknowledges both the problem and attributes it to feeling he has to go for more on the shot against this opponent

Borg making good use of net too, when he wants, though he usually doesn’t. Why would, dominating baseline rallies and passing when Tanner approaches? - but he does come in against weak balls, even manufactures an approach or two, plus serve-volleys once. He’s 12/14 at net

Tanner’s ‘volley’ winners are easy ones, most of them straight up putaways
The UEs are on tricky side - a bit wide or a bit low at below average pace. Still, he’s rarely able to make such volleys. This the area where his volleying isn’t good. He doesn’t miss putaways, he doesn’t face a lot of routine volleys (good job by Borg to not give him such), and one can say what he faces in its place is ‘routine plus’

Good for Borg to shift the standard of ‘routine’, but still, not good good for Tanner in handling it
Extending out, Borg with great passing yield. Just typical

Borg comes in off weak balls, once or twice manufactures approach and even serve-volleys once. For him, 14 approaches in short match is substantial. Wouldn’t be strange for him to have virtually 0, sans the odd forced approach

In a bunch of nutshells -
- Tanner strong serve at low in count yields same lot of freebies as Borg normal serve + Tanner so-so return consistency
- In baseline rallies, Tanner leading action with some gusto, but predictably, Borg able to hit one more ball
- Tanner thriving serve-volleying on back of the serve. He putsaway volleys, but isn’t great at making anything a little trickier than routine. Borg passing well - first to grant trickier-than-routine volley and second in clean passing with precision
- Borg using net some himself to good effect

Match Progression
Borg breaks to start the match. 3 ground UEs from Tanner in it, and a FH cc pass winner from Borg, after moving Tanner wide to make first volley

Tanner breaks back for 3-3. He wins 3 ‘net’ points - a smash on bounce from no-man’s land after chip-charge returning, a lunging BHV and very neat drop FHV after another chip-charge. Draws a FH error with a deep shot too

Borg breaks decisively for 5-4 in 1/5 first serve game in a good game. Winning wide BH cc, brilliant BH cc pass winner and to wrap up, a net point where Tanner has look at FH dtl pass but misses
And serves out to 30, taking net couple times genuinely to win points and also passing his way up there to force net to to net FHV error finish

Borg open up 4-0 and 5-1 lead in second set. He’s in his groove of passing well, and walling up from back. And at 15-30, is 2 return points away from ending match 6-1
Tanner though, fights back to 5-5 in odd little passage of play. Borg actually ups his aggression a little - he serves harder first serves andlooks to hit flatter off the ground. Tanner makes the returns Borg misses a few flatter groundies, and Tanner seeks out net to more eager extent than earlier. Some smart volleys form Tanner in this period and he puts away 2 FHV winners to level at 5-5

Borg wins last 2 games. Ground UEs from Tanner (3rd ball, wrong footing FH attempt, attacking wide BH cc and a BH blink) along with missing a FH at net serve-volleying gets him broken

He strikes wrong footing BH inside-out winner and a move-over FH inside-in return one to reach 15-30 on serve out, but then misses 2 routine BH returns. On match point, Tanner misses a wide, not pacey, dipping pass on FHV

Summing up, pretty good match. Borg predictably far more consistent off the ground but Tanner does hit with power and depth to have him defending (as opposed to clockwork cozily making groundies), especially with drive BH cc’s. As everyone gets outlasted by Borg, getting outlasted by him, while having him on back foot some reflects good job from the loser

Tanner’s first serve and serve-volleying behind it is fruitful, but low first serve percentage limits how much. And rest is Borg walling up from the back to supremacy, being better on pass than Tanner is on volley and the winner even using net a little himself to good effect

Stats for Borg’s rubber with John Newcombe - Match Stats/Report - Borg vs Newcombe, WITC 1977 | Talk Tennis