The legend of the Bjorn Borg-John McEnroe rivalry was born at Centre Court, their first meeting coming on a tense July day in the Wimbledon final. It was NBC’s second edition of Breakfast at Wimbledon, ground-breaking programming that televised the final at 9 a.m. ET in the United States rather than airing it on tape delay. This match made that decision permanent and paved the way for more live European programming.
The stoic Swede was looking for his fifth consecutive Wimbledon title against the 21-year-old American SuperBrat, who was booed when he took the court by the normally polite British crowd after his outbursts during the fortnight. The polar opposites banged away at each other – McEnroe, the emotional left-handed attacker, and Borg, the cool right-handed baseliner. Borg dropped the first set, then won the next two, setting up the match’s signature moment.
McEnroe and Borg engaged in a legendary tiebreak at the end of the fourth set, eventually won by McEnroe 18-16 after the American saved five championship points. But Borg bounced back and held off McEnroe 8-6 in the deciding fifth set to claim his fifth crown.
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