Last August, Bjorn Borg (pictured) told the BlackRock Tour of Champions website that Rafael Nadal would win Wimbledon in 2008. Last night, John McEnroe, described Nadal’s five set win over Federer as ‘the greatest match I have ever seen.’
Borg and McEnroe were the last two men to share a rivalry and a Wimbledon final comparable to Nadal vs. Federer, and both were courtside throughout.
Exclusive Video: Borg vs. McEnroe - Inside The Rivalry
After finishing his commentary duties for NBC, McEnroe told me: “I think I have just witnessed the greatest match I have ever seen. The drama, the quality and the way it ended when it seemed as though no more tennis could possibly be played was remarkable, to put it mildly. I am just happy that I was able to be part of it in just a small way.”
Borg watched every ball from the Royal Box, including an incredible fourth set tie-break that would surely have sent memories racing back to the fourth set tie-break that he had shared with McEnroe in the 1980 Wimbledon final.
Last August, at the BlackRock Tour of Champions event in the Algarve, Portugal, the Swede had said this:
“If I would pick a winner for Wimbledon next year (2008) I would pick Nadal. I think he’s really ready to win Wimbledon. He’s improving every year. He knows he can play on grass now and he knows he can win at Wimbledon. He’s a great player and a great person.”
More than 66,000 people have viewed Borg’s video prediction so far.
Later this year, Borg and McEnroe will resume their own incredible rivalry when the BlackRock Tour of Champion arrives in Budapest, Hungary for the first time (October 9-12). More information
The next stop on the BlackRock Tour of Champions is a first visit to Istanbul, Turkey, next week (July 17-20), where the No.1 player in the South African Airways Champions Tour Rankings - Michael Stich - will take on former World No.1’s Marcelo Rios and Thomas Muster, and Grand Slam title winning trio Goran Ivanisevic, Sergi Bruguera and Pat Cash. More information
