via Getty
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – SEPTEMBER 22: Captains Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe enjoy a moment before the last match between Alexander Zverev of Team Europe and Milos Raonic of Team World during Day Three of the Laver Cup 2019 at Palexpo on September 22, 2019 in Geneva, Switzerland. The Laver Cup will see six players from the rest of the World competing against their counterparts from Europe. Team World is captained by John McEnroe and Team Europe is captained by Bjorn Borg. The tournament runs from September 20-22. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images for Laver Cup)
via Getty
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – SEPTEMBER 22: Captains Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe enjoy a moment before the last match between Alexander Zverev of Team Europe and Milos Raonic of Team World during Day Three of the Laver Cup 2019 at Palexpo on September 22, 2019 in Geneva, Switzerland. The Laver Cup will see six players from the rest of the World competing against their counterparts from Europe. Team World is captained by John McEnroe and Team Europe is captained by Bjorn Borg. The tournament runs from September 20-22. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images for Laver Cup)
Over his illustrious career, John McEnroe has had many notable rivalries. His matches against the likes of Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl were a treat for tennis fans across the globe. One such famous rivalry brewed between McEnroe and Bjorn Borg.
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The two played in several crucial matches against each other over the course of their careers. Further, in the 14 matches played between them, both of them won seven matches apiece. The Wimbledon final between them in 1980 is considered as one of the greatest matches. Borg prevailed over McEnroe in that match in five sets. During an appearance in a podcast, McEnroe talked about an interesting encounter with Borg.
John McEnroe reminisces his precious moment
During the Here’s the Thing podcast on WNYC Studios, the American legend opened up about one of his greatest moments. He said, “Two months after I was playing Borg in this match and I was going crazy, was five-all in the third set and Bjorn pointed his finger and said, come here and I thought this guy’s going to tell me I’m the biggest a**hole that ever lived because I was just losing it and he put his arm around me when we got in and said, look, it’s ok. This is good.”
READ MORE: ‘Toughest Time in My Life’ – John McEnroe Opens Up About His Childhood Adversities Like Never Before
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Further, he went on to say, “And I had these like goosebumps and for a second I thought, he’s trying to play head-games with me and I started analyzing but then I thought, this guy is accepting me and I am a part of this elite group and it’s like, look, let’s roll with it. This is going to be amazing. That was one of the greatest moments of my life. Bjorn Borg accepting you.”
McEnroe’s relationship with Borg
McEnroe took big strides in the tennis world at a time when Borg was already at the peak of his career. Although strong rivals on the court, the two maintained a cordial relationship off the court. McEnroe once had even said that their off-court personalities were more similar than people realized.
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Borg and McEnroe will be seen against each other as captains of Team Europe and Team World, respectively, at the Laver Cup later this year.
