Stroke for stroke: Some of the sport's greatest rivalries

No 1 is the only thing that matters. You know it as well as I do. If you’re No 2, you might as well be No 3 or 4. You’re
a nobody —Bjorn Borg to John McEnroe on why he retired after the 1981 US Open

It has been hard to convince this 40 something tennis enthusiast and a friend, who had only read about John McEnroe’s and Bjorn Borg’s tussles in newspapers, that there is an equally compelling, if not better, rivalry going on in tennis.

If time ever stood still in tennis for somebody, it did so for him in 1981. “Definitely it can’t be bigger than 1981. It hasn’t been tennis after that,” is his usual refrain. There is no point in arguing with a man who can talk about McEnroe the way KL Saigal fans get nostalgic about the era when songs were sung live on camera. You can’t beat that.

For the present generation of tennis watchers, however, it has to be the Wimbledon final in 2008, when Rafael Nadal edged out Roger Federer in what’s now considered by many as one of the best ever matches, if not the best.

However, there is a certain romanticism attached with the newspaper clippings that has a black and white picture of John McEnroe, with his receding curly hair, shaking hands with a seemingly grumpy Bjorn Borg, whose blonde flowing mane is reined in by an elastic head band.

The legendary rivalry between Ice Man Bjorg and Maverick McEnroe is as much a part of folklore as the one between Ali and Frazier, or say the Spassky-Fischer battle that transcended into something more than sport in a world that was gripped by cold war.

Rivalry in sport is as much a point of debate as any individual’s brilliance. The riveting drama that is encapsulated in a classic duel between two athletes, who have spent a lifetime honing their skills, is unmatched. And tennis, as a sport, because of the number of tournaments and the variety of surfaces it is played on, has more than its fair share of rivalries.

It would be difficult to compare rivalries of different eras. By sheer numbers and the frequency at which the two opponents have played each other in Grand Slam finals and in other major events in the last six years, it can be assumed that Nadal and Federer are the greatest rivals in the history of tennis.

Fire and Ice
1981 is the year when a 22-year-old McEnroe, whom Borg later reportedly described as “berserk, like a mental patient they just released”, defeated the Swedish World No 1 in the Wimbledon final to break his five-year winning streak.

While this caused considerable agony to Borg, what followed later that year in the US Open, where he was beaten again to be toppled from the World No 1 rank, was most upsetting. After losing in the US Open final, the 26-year-old shook hands with McEnroe, chose not to speak to journalists, and went straight to the airport and left New York. He soon retired and did not return even after much pleading by McEnroe, who had been playing with a dogged determination to overthrow Borg from the perch. What made their duels even more interesting were the different personalities of Borg and McEnroe.

Borg was not called Ice Man for nothing. When he stepped into the court, he exuded a Zen-like aura. He had reportedly trained himself and brought his heart beat to around 45 per minute. He played total tennis and there was nothing wrong that he could do when wielding a racket.

McEnroe, on the other hand, was like a grenade with its pin pulled off. There was no way one could guess when he would explode. During one of his usual temper tantrums because he was unhappy with the surface, he told a balding umpire, “There is more hair on your head than there is grass on the court.”

While Borg was a completely trained athlete, many said that McEnroe was talented and often would wake up before a match, pick up a racquet and win it. It may not be true. But he had this kind of aura.

Both Borg and McEnroe played in only four Grand Slam finals. And the American won three of them. Overall, they played each other 14 times, and both shared the honours equally. They were  separated by four years, and it’s uncanny that Federer is 4 years and 10 months older than Nadal.

When Nadal toppled Federer from the top-ranking, the Swiss master, like Borg, was around 26 years old. The only difference is that he didn’t mind playing as No 2 or No 3, as long as it gave him a chance to fight back for a place at the top.

But with McEnroe and Borg, there is no way of telling how the rivalry would have shaped up post-1981. Borg did not return from retirement.

Other rivalries
Germany’s 17-year-old superstar Boris Becker, complete with his blonde flowing hair and Hollywood looks, swept everyone off their feet in 1985. Sweden’s Stefan Edberg was his main rival. They were opponents since their junior days and it continued till Becker’s personal life overtook his tennis.

Steffi Graf was first noticed for her looks before her tennis took over. The Martina Navratilova vs Chris Evert battle soon became Navratilova vs Graf and the German beauty eventually prevailed.

Graf’s most serious challenger was Monica Seles, whose grunts when playing a shot would force Maria Sharapova to wear earplugs. The Serbian 16-year-old shocked Graf at Roland Garros in 1990. From then on she dominated the German till 1993, when an over-zealous fan of the now Mrs Agassi, stabbed Seles during a break between games. Seles returned after a couple of years but had little success.

Sampras vs Agassi
It was like Tom Hanks competing with Colin Farell. Pistol Pete was methodical. He was power play at its best. You could break him if only you could return his serve. From 1990, he held the No 1 ranking for a record 286 weeks.

Agassi was like a rockstar who found gripping a tennis racquet more convenient than a Les Paul guitar. He would win, if he wanted to. He made news for his flings and his jet-setting lifestyle and of course, his blonde mane, which later vanished. He held the top rank for 101 weeks.

Agassi’s return of service was poetic and so was his play from the baseline. He was a perfect foil to Sampras, the machine.

But Sampras dominated the rivalry.
He won four of the five Grand Slam finals they played. And even in overall career figures, he led Agassi.

But to be fair to Agassi, he held his own against Sampras in the period from 1990 to 1995 (head-to-head 8-8) and then from 1999 to 2002 (head-to-head 3-3). It was between 1995 and 1999 that Sampras won more (head-to-head 9-3). Their rivalry was fierce, but they remain friends.

Who’s the best?
1981 notwithstanding, the best rivalry has to be between Federer and Nadal. Given that from 2004 onwards nobody other the Swiss master and the Spaniard have been at the top of men’s rankings.

The way these two have dominated the sport is evident from the fact that players like Lleyton Hewitt, Andy Roddick have not won a Grand Slam since 2005 and only three others have managed to breach the Federer-Nadal wall.

Marat Safin, Juan Martin Del Potro and Novak Djokovic are three players, who have managed to win a Grand Slam. Otherwise, it has been Federer-Nadal show all the way. Tennis could not have asked for better people to be making headlines in their sport. Both Nadal and Federer are extremely cordial athletes. It was evident the way Nadal applauded some awesome winners from Federer at Roland Garros this month.

They don’t throw tantrums and are never rude to press, fans or umpires. There are no rumours or gossips about these players. They are known to be very family-oriented stars, who look like they head straight to their house for a cup of tea after a match.

Beginning of a legend
Federer, having won three Grand Slams in 2004, was already No 1 in the world, when 17-year old Nadal shocked him in Miami. Though, the Swiss legend went on to dominate the sport for next three years, it had become clear that he would struggle against the rising Spaniard.

Borg got his rude shock in 1981. For Federer, it was Wimbledon 2008, when both showed why they are the best as they duelled for more than four hours and played an exceptionally long final set before Nadal went for the kill and beat Federer on grass.

Till then it was a belief that Nadal could beat Federer only on clay. Next year Nadal beat him again on Hard court at US Open. As camera zoomed in on the sobbing Federer they caught him saying, “God, this is killing me …”

Though Nadal has dominated since then, Federer hasn’t thrown in the towel. He completed a career Grand Slam when he won the French Open beating Robin Soderling in 2009.

Nadal, too, has completed his career slam and come back from a career threatening injury.

Comparing Rafa & Federer
Technically, Federer is a much better player. He arguably has the most complete technical game in the history of the game. His serve is better, so is his forehand.

And as athletes too there is very little to choose between the two. The area where Nadal scores is mental match-up and it appears like he  is one of the toughest players psychologically.

And Federer possibly becomes a bit wobbly in knees when he sees Nadal on the other side of the court. The Swiss may have ended Novak Djokovic’s 41-match winning streak effortlessly in semifinals. But he failed to beat a not-at-his-best Nadal in the final.

Having been there and done it all, both Federer and Nadal are now chasing history and they want to be the best ever. They have won pretty much everything to start a separate debate on that topic.

Federer will be 30 soon and Nadal is 25. The Spaniard has the chance to overtake his rivals’ tally of 16 Grand Slam wins. However, the Swiss master, during the recent French Open, played better than he has in recent times, showing that the Wimbledon coming up soon is going to be an open battle.

By no means is this rivalry nearing the end. By not calling it quits in 2008, Federer has ensured that time did not stand still for the tennis fans that year.

And we have our answers about Federer and Nadal, unlike those who wonder ‘what if’, looking at newspaper clippings.