A report on John McEnroe and Ivan Lendl

McEnroe at the 2012 French Open in which he won the senior doubles event with his brother Patrick
Ivan Lendl in Miami, March 2012
John McEnroe at the 1979 ABN Tennis Tournament
Ivan Lendl in the final of the 1984 ABN World Tennis tournament in Rotterdam
McEnroe in a Dunlop advertisement published on El Gráfico, 1981
Lendl (far right) talking to Judy Murray.
McEnroe with Peter Fleming (left) at Wimbledon, mid 1980s
John McEnroe serving during a Champions Cup Boston match, 2007
John McEnroe in the 2007 Madrid Masters Senior
McEnroe demonstrating his swing at a Vanity Fair party in New York City, 2009
John McEnroe at Wimbledon 2014

He also had a comfortable head-to-head winning record against his biggest rivals, including a 21-15 record (7-3 in major matches) against John McEnroe, a 22-13 record (4-3 in major matches) against Jimmy Connors, and a 15-7 record (5-4 in major matches) against Mats Wilander.

- Ivan Lendl

He made the WCT Final for the third time and beat Ivan Lendl in an epic five-setter.

- John McEnroe
McEnroe at the 2012 French Open in which he won the senior doubles event with his brother Patrick

9 related topics with Alpha

Overall
Connors in 1994

Jimmy Connors

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American former world No. 1 tennis player.

American former world No. 1 tennis player.

Connors in 1994
Connors at the 1978 ABN Tennis Tournament holding his Wilson T2000 steel racket

His prominent younger opponents included Björn Borg, Vitas Gerulaitis, Ivan Lendl, and John McEnroe.

Two singles players playing a tennis match at the Australian Open

Tennis

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Racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent or between two teams of two players each (doubles).

Racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent or between two teams of two players each (doubles).

Two singles players playing a tennis match at the Australian Open
French singles player Guillaume Rufin serves to Czech player Tomáš Berdych in a tennis match at the Australian Open
Painting from Cremona; end of the 16th century.
Jeu de paume in the 17th century
Augurio Perera's house in Edgbaston, Birmingham, England, where he and Harry Gem first played the modern game of lawn tennis
Lawn tennis in the US, 1887
Tennis doubles final at 1896 Olympic Games
Lawn tennis in Canada, ca. 1900
International Tennis Hall of Fame at the Newport Casino
Racket of Franjo Punčec in a wooden frame – late 1930s
Wooden racket – c. 1920s
Two different tennis strings of lengths 12m (left), and 200 m (right)
A tennis racket and balls.
The dimensions of a tennis court
Tennis court in Petäjävesi, Finland
Two players before a serve.
The scoreboard of a tennis match.
Convention dictates that the two players shake hands at the end of a match.
Roger Federer in a serve motion.
del Potro in a forehand motion.
Novak Djokovic in a two-handed backhand motion.
A tennis match at Centre Court of Wimbledon in 2007.
McEnroe with Fleming playing as a doubles team at Wimbledon in the 1980s.
An umpire informing two players of the rules.
Ken Rosewall
Rod Laver
Roger Federer
Rafael Nadal
Novak Djokovic
Helen Wills
Margaret Court
Martina Navratilova
Chris Evert
Steffi Graf
Serena Williams

While players are gradually less competitive in singles by their late 20s and early 30s, they can still continue competitively in doubles (as instanced by Martina Navratilova and John McEnroe, who won doubles titles in their 40s).

Earlier in Sampras' career, the most Grand Slams won up to that point by other active players was eight (jointly held by Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl).

Becker in 2019

Boris Becker

4 links

German former world No. 1 tennis player.

German former world No. 1 tennis player.

Becker in 2019
Becker with his mother Elvira at the Radio Regenbogen Awards, 2019
Becker in 1994
Becker at Stars & Cars, Stuttgart, 2007
Becker photographed by Studio Harcourt
Becker with Barbara Feltus in 1992

In 1986, Becker successfully defended his Wimbledon title, defeating No. 1 Ivan Lendl in straight sets in the final.

In the Davis Cup that year, Becker and John McEnroe played one of the longest matches in tennis history.

Wilander in the Eurosport studio during the 2014 Australian Open at Melbourne Park

Mats Wilander

3 links

Swedish former world No. 1 tennis player.

Swedish former world No. 1 tennis player.

Wilander in the Eurosport studio during the 2014 Australian Open at Melbourne Park

As an unseeded player, he upset second seed Ivan Lendl in the fourth round, fifth seed Vitas Gerulaitis in the quarterfinals, fourth seed José Luis Clerc in the semifinals, and third seed Guillermo Vilas in a four-set final that lasted 4 hours and 42 minutes.

Wilander returned to the French Open in 1983, where he lost to Yannick Noah after defeating John McEnroe in a quarterfinal.

World Championship Tennis

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Tour for professional male tennis players established in 1968 (the first players signed a contract at the end of 1967) and lasted until the emergence of the ATP Tour in 1990.

Tour for professional male tennis players established in 1968 (the first players signed a contract at the end of 1967) and lasted until the emergence of the ATP Tour in 1990.

The titles were split between Ivan Lendl and John McEnroe, winning two each.

Borg in 2014

Björn Borg

3 links

Swedish former world No. 1 tennis player.

Swedish former world No. 1 tennis player.

Borg in 2014
Borg in 1974
Borg (left) celebrating his win over Guillermo Vilas at the French Open final in 1974
Borg (right) playing Tom Okker at Rotterdam Open in 1974
Borg playing a double-handed backhand shot at the 1979 ABN World Tennis Tournament
Borg (left) playing against John McEnroe in 1979
Borg as a sports commentator at the French Open in 1983
Borg in 1987
Borg in 1991
Borg and Simionescu in Snagov, Romania, on 24 July 1980
Borg in 2013
Borg in 1991

His rivalry with John McEnroe is considered one of the best in the sport's history, and their meeting in the 1980 Wimbledon final is considered one of the greatest matches ever played.

Borg then defeated Ivan Lendl for his second Masters title.

Edberg in 2012

Stefan Edberg

3 links

Swedish former professional tennis player.

Swedish former professional tennis player.

Edberg in 2012

He is one of only two men in the Open Era to have been ranked world No. 1 in both singles and doubles (the other being John McEnroe).

In 1990, an abdominal muscle injury forced Edberg to retire from the Australian Open final while trailing Ivan Lendl 5–2 (including two breaks of serve) in the third set.

Novak Djokovic, the current men's singles world No. 1.

List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players

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The Pepperstone ATP rankings are the Association of Tennis Professionals' (ATP) merit-based system for determining the rankings in men's tennis.

The Pepperstone ATP rankings are the Association of Tennis Professionals' (ATP) merit-based system for determining the rankings in men's tennis.

Novak Djokovic, the current men's singles world No. 1.
Novak Djokovic, the record holder of most weeks spent as world No. 1.
Roger Federer spent a record 237 consecutive weeks at world No. 1. in the 2000s.
Ivan Lendl spent the most weeks at the top of the ATP rankings in the 1980s.
Jimmy Connors spent the most weeks at world No. 1 in the 1970s.
Ilie Năstase became the first ATP world No. 1 ranked player on August 23, 1973.
Novak Djokovic holds an all-time record of seven year-end No. 1 rankings.
Pete Sampras finished a six consecutive years as world No. 1 in the 1990s.
John McEnroe finished as the year-end No. 1 for four consecutive years in the 1980s.
Lleyton Hewitt was the youngest male player to hold the world No. 1 ranking, at age 20 in November 2001.
Daniil Medvedev, the current men's singles world No. 1.

Two players, Ivan Lendl and Marcelo Ríos, have reached No. 1 without previously having won a major title.

John McEnroe held the No. 1 ranking a record 14 times, and Sampras is the only other player to have held it 10 or more times, with 11 stints.

ITF World Champions

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The International Tennis Federation (ITF) designates a World Champion each year based on performances throughout the year, emphasising the Grand Slam tournaments, and also considering team events such as the Davis Cup and Fed Cup.

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) designates a World Champion each year based on performances throughout the year, emphasising the Grand Slam tournaments, and also considering team events such as the Davis Cup and Fed Cup.

The 1983 panel split two to one between John McEnroe (votes of Budge and Perry) and Mats Wilander (vote of Hoad).

When Ivan Lendl was chosen as champion for 1985, the panel's announcement was accompanied with a rebuke for Lendl's criticism of some tournaments and his refusal to play in the Davis Cup.