Jimmy Connors' 5 biggest rivals: From John McEnroe to Ivan Lendl
Jimmy Connors of the United States is one of the greatest tennis players of all time. He has won eight Grand Slam titles, including five US Open titles, and spent 268 weeks as the World No. 1. He turned pro in 1972 and retired in 1996, thereby having a 24-year-long playing career.
Connors also finished his career with 1274 wins, which still remains a record. In this article, we are going to take a look at his five greatest rivals over the course of his career.
#5. Arthur Ashe:
The late Arthur Ashe was probably the greatest black American to ever play tennis. He famously beat Connors in the Wimbledon final in 1975. However, that was the only time Ashe managed to beat Connors in their seven encounters.
Connors' game from the baseline dominated Ashe's serve-and-volley style on slower courts. However, the Wimbledon final probably remains the most memorable match in Ashe's career.
#4. Ilie Nastase:
Nastase was one of the top players in the 1970s. He also formed a great rivalry with Connors, playing 27 matches at the professional level. Nastase led their head-to-head 15-12, which means that their rivalry was pretty even.
They met twice in the Grand Slams, the 1972 Wimbledon and the 1982 US Open. Nastase won the first of those matches, but Connors won the second in straight sets.
#3. Bjorn Borg:
Borg was a peerless player in the 1970s, amassing a then-record 11 Grand Slams in his relatively short career. Quite naturally, he formed a great rivalry with Connors. The two players met 23 times, with Borg winning 15 of those matches.
Borg leads 5-3 in their Grand Slam meetings, but they are tied at 2-2 in the Major finals. Borg beat Connors in successive Wimbledon finals in 1977 and 1978, but Connors beat him in the 1976 US Open final.
#2. Ivan Lendl:
Lendl is much younger than Connors and peaked in the mid to late 1980s. Hence, a lot of their matches took place with Connors in his decline. As a result, Lendl enjoyed an upper hand in their rivalry, leading their head-to-head 22-13.
They met each other on seven occasions in Grand Slams, with Connors winning the first three matches and Lendl prevailing in the last four, including in the 1982 US Open final.
#1. John McEnroe:
McEnroe, who is Connors' compatriot, was undoubtedly the latter's greatest rival. They shared an acrimonious relationship and even had on-court spats on a few occasions. Theirs was probably the most riveting rivalry in the 1980s.
Connors collided 34 times with McEnroe, with the latter winning 20 of those matches. They met on nine occasions in Grand Slams, with McEnroe prevailing in six of those matches. Connors won the Wimbledon final in 1982 against McEnroe, but the latter got his revenge in the 1984 final.