Great tennis rivalries in the Open Era of tennis
Tennis without a doubt is one of the most competitive sports known and over the years there have been many great players to have played this sport. When two great people compete with each other the competition is tough and it is inevitable for rivalries to develop between them. Hence there have been quite a few very distinct tennis rivalries to date.
The most notable and ongoing rivalry is that of the top two greatest players - Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Federer has a record of winning sixteen Grand Slam titles which is the highest win any player has achieved in the history of the game and Nadal has eight. Before Nadal came into the scene, Federer had been ruling over the world of tennis alone and he was considered to be the undisputed champion. However, at the French Open in 2005, Nadal shocked the world by defeating Ferderer who was at that time the world number one. Some saw this defeat as the end of the Federer Era; while others saw this as the beginning of a great rivalry. From here onwards these two professional tennis players have dominated the world of tennis. They have faced each other twenty-one times out of which seven matches have been Grand Slam finals. Nadal is in the lead by having won fourteen of these twenty one matches. Recently Federer was knocked out of Wimbledon in the quarterfinals and Nadal was the Wimbledon champion, this has made people come to drastic conclusions that maybe the reign of Federer actually has come to an end and now Nadal alone will rule.
One of the greatest rivalries the history of tennis has been between Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi. There has been a clash between these two players because of their talent as well as their personalities. Sampras was always a player who was known for his reserved behaviour and systematic approach to the game. On the other hand Agassi had a flashy personality and was very outspoken. He was known to be a rebel in his younger days and he used a very different approach to the game of tennis. These differences spiced up rivalry between these two great American tennis players. The two were up against each other thirty-four times in their careers, out of which Sampras had a clear edge over Agassi by winning twenty of these matches. They played five Grand Slam finals against each other and Sampras won four out of these five Grand Slam titles. Throughout their careers a tension had always been felt between the two on the court as well as off the court, making this one of the most prominent rivalries of all time.
As we move further back into the history of tennis we come across numerous rivalries. Another very note-worthy rivalry has been between the great John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg. These two have played some of the most entertaining matches of their era. McEnroe was known for his temperamental attitude in this rivalry whereas Borg was the cool and calm player who had a very methodical approach to the game. The two encountered each other fourteen times between the years 1978 and 1981, and won seven matches each showing that they were both equally talented. One of their most famous matches was played at the Wimbledon final in 1980. It is remembered as one of the most exciting matches in the history of tennis. In this match Borg beat McEnroe in a 20 minute long tie breaker and won his fifth consecutive Wimbledon title by the end of it. This rivalry was not very long lasting but it was a classic nonetheless and is still remembered by fans.
These rivalries are what make the game of tennis even more fun and thrilling to watch. It raises the feeling of competiveness among the players as well as the tennis fans.
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