Arch-Rival, Who Didn’t Have a Friendly Relationship With Boris Becker, Recollects Feisty Rivalry With Defamed Tennis Legend – ‘It Was Difficult’

Former Czech-American tennis star Ivan Lendl played at the time of some really great tennis players. He faced the likes of Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Boris Becker and Andre Agassi. While the legend has a great record against most players of his time, Lendl knows a few specific qualities which made each of these superstars special.

Recently, the eight-time Grand Slam champion spoke about what made former German tennis star Boris Becker special.

Ivan Lendl on Boris Becker

Ivan and Boris are among two of the greatest players of all time. The two had a fierce rivalry, and it is very difficult to declare any one of them as better than the other. Recently, the coach of Andy Murray sat down for a Spotify podcast. Here, Lendl answered a few questions from the fans as well.

One of the German fans was curious to know about the challenge Lendl faced while playing against Boris Becker. Here’s what the eight-time Grand Slam champion said in reply.

“Well, there were a few challenges playing Boris. He was very powerful. So he could control the points. No one likes to have the opponent control the points. And the second thing is that Boris was hot and cold,” Lendl said.

He further added, “I got to play him always towards the end of the tournaments. If he was cold, he would have had bad losses earlier. But if he was hot, now you are playing him at his best. So I always played Boris when he was pretty close to his best and it was difficult.”

When asked about the off-court friendship with Becker, Lendl said, “We never really knew each other that well.”

Read more: ‘Didn’t Get Along’ – John McEnroe Once Made a Mockery of His Virtual Self by Comparing It to His Legendary ‘Robotic’ Rival

It’s pretty shocking to know that two of the greatest players from the same era never got an opportunity to get closer.

The rivalry between Becker and Lendl

It won’t be wrong to say that Ivan Lendl and Boris Becker had one of the best rivalries of their time. The two faced each other in 21 matches. Out of this, Becker won 10 while Lendl took a marginal lead with 11 wins to his name.

Talking about their achievements, Becker has six Grand Slam titles in his closet while Lendl lifted eight major trophies. The two of them played many memorable matches throughout their career.

Watch this story: Serena Williams once thanked ‘fellow clown’ Novak Djokovic for reinstating an old tradition

By the time they played the last match of their rivalry in Japan, the two were tied on 10 wins each. Here, Lendl won the match in three sets to end on high. What is your favorite match from their rivalry? Let us know in the comments below.