Originally posted by licensedcoach
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Borg v Gerulaitis in the 1980 French Open final.
Vitas is no match for Borg on clay but some of the rallies are good. Vitas's forehand is interesting as the backswing varies in size depending on the shot he is playing. His backswing goes beyond the plane of the body whenever he tries to get increased topspin. But no matter how well Vitas plays there is no way through. Borg can rally forever and Vitas's game cannot stand up to it. Nevertheless this short clip is attractive to watch.
Borg was the forerunner to the modern game in so many ways. He had the forehand grip that produced topspin by default while few other players of that era had...the rest is history.
I just love the way Borg blankets the court. Correct me if I am wrong but has any player ever moved better?
Vitas is no match for Borg on clay but some of the rallies are good. Vitas's forehand is interesting as the backswing varies in size depending on the shot he is playing. His backswing goes beyond the plane of the body whenever he tries to get increased topspin. But no matter how well Vitas plays there is no way through. Borg can rally forever and Vitas's game cannot stand up to it. Nevertheless this short clip is attractive to watch.
Borg was the forerunner to the modern game in so many ways. He had the forehand grip that produced topspin by default while few other players of that era had...the rest is history.
I just love the way Borg blankets the court. Correct me if I am wrong but has any player ever moved better?
I don't know...I don't think that Borg was the forerunner of the modern game which I associate with bigger equipment. But I certainly understand what you mean about the grips and the two handed style of play. The thing is...Borg was a great all court player as well. His game certainly "evolved" to encompass all of the various styles of play back then. His game certainly stood the test of different surfaces.
But this is an incredible clip. Vitas Gerulaitis was just a notch below the Big Three of yesteryear...Bjorn Borg, Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe. Vitas had a lifetime record of 515-223...not to shabby. Boy if you put the four of them together they just about cover the spectrum of play back then. Four very diverse interpretations of the game...something that seems to be sorely lacking in "modern tennis". Correct me if I am wrong.
But Vitas was an incredible performer day in day out in spite of his reputation of a balls out partier. Take this run to the French Open finals against Borg. He won against Peter Elter in the first round in five sets, second round dispatched Fritz Buehning who was also a Hopman protege in straight sets, then he defeated a Czech that I have never heard of in four sets and then he beat Ferdi Taygan in straight sets. He was just getting warmed up though as he defeated the great Polish player Wojtek Fibak in five sets and then he had a monumental tussle with Jimmy Connors whom he beat in five in the semis. I think it would be safe to say the Vitas had also done his fair share of partying in the Paris atmosphere of the "Parisian Hour" not to mention partnering with the great Australian Fred Stolle in the doubles. They eventually lost to the winners of the doubles Victor Amaya and Henry Pfister. Victor being a 1972 graduate of high school in Michigan, same as me...he was really a sight to behold. About 6'7", a mountain of big left handed power...coached by the great Welby Van Horn according to legend.
Bjorn Borg on the other hand cut down on his activities and had a ferocious run to the finals. He never lost a set the entire tournament. He went through the draw like a hot knife through melting butter. Take a look at his semifinal result against one Harold Solomon...6-2, 6-2, 6-0. He just pounded the American clay court specialist into the red clay of Roland Garros. Most impressive stuff...he was blanketing the court the whole tournament that's for certain. Suffocating the opposition in the process.
I just love these video clips of these great finals of Grand Slams...but the real story is often in the draw sheets. It is how the contestants got to the finals that often precludes the results of the actual championship match.
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