John McEnroe: 'Bjorn Borg was almost a god, like Roger Federer'
John McEnroe reflected on what his rivalry with Bjorn Borg represented for him. The American said: "He is probably the only guy who I did not have problems with on the court. We never had a problem. He took me under his wing, in a way. And I got respect because of that. 'Cause he was already like a god. He was like Roger Federer at the time. Everyone loved him. And he was this great-looking guy. Dressed right. The girls loved him. So I was like, I want to be like him."
On Wimbledon he added: "It was an incredible time in England in the '70s. Punk was breaking out. People were getting on me. It was like oil and water. Me, a New York kid. You are screaming and yelling all the time. They give you their opinion. Over there, they are much more reserved. They are very proper. I was like, What's wrong with these people? They are so well behaved there. And so we clashed right away. But I got a lot of support. If you walked down the equivalent of, I don't know what street you can - Kings Road in London. It would be Lexington. I don't know. And they got a lot of support. There was like some freaky people around. But they were supportive. The establishment and the papers, which were owned by Rupert Mudoch. They were giving me a very hard time. And there is a lot more newspapers in London than there are here. There was 15 local papers so that makes it where they looking to get you."
from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2LLA4r0
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