PUNE: Dedication.
If you have to characterize Leo Borg in a word, that would be it.
It’s one thing to deal with the pressure of living up to a famous last name, it’s quite another to embrace it and give it your best day in and day out – warranting admiration, perhaps earning a label.
“It’s a special thing for me to have a father like him,” Borg said of his father, a tennis legend. Bjorn Borgduring a video call from his hometown of Stockholm on Thursday.
Sweden will host India in the World Cup Group I tie on Saturday and Sunday.
“He’s done a lot of things in his time and I feel really blessed because he has all the information I need to get (from dad and coach).
“Of course he’s been really supportive and he’s always been there for me on (the) court and off the tennis. He’s actually been the best dad. So I’m pretty, really proud of him and he’s got a really special place in my heart.”
On the tennis front, there is no comparison between father and son.
Borg Sr., now 68, lifted Sweden to its maiden Davis Cup victory in 1975 when he was just 19 years old. If his 33 singles victories are the record in tournament history, his six French Open trophies – four of them in a row – five Wimbledon wins in a row put him on a whole different level.
Anyone else, in any walk of life, would have walked away from borrowed stardom and the harsh scrutiny that comes with it. Borg junior has decided not only to play the sport, but also to succeed in it.
Currently ranked 603, Leo had risen to 334 on the ATP list last year before losing form. He has regained some of his level and motivation by winning the title and finishing second on the miserable ITF circuit in Thailand in recent weeks, jumping 169 places in the rankings.
Leo, 21, spoke of a “simple” piece of advice he received from his father long ago.
“I was really young, he said: ‘It’s really simple, never stop fighting until the last point.’ And that’s been very good advice, just fight the whole match and also life outside of tennis. It’s a really simple thing. , but it has been really big.”
Amazingly, Leo hasn’t watched videos of his dad playing.
“Obviously I’ve watched some things, but it’s true, I’ve never looked for a video of him or anything like that. Yeah, (it’s) funny, I know,” he smiled.
The young man’s humble journey on the tennis court may also explain the current sorrows of the sport in Sweden. Because Sweden is not only Borg’s country, it is also Zlatan’s home.
Although Leo, who played football until the age of 12, did not doubt his commitment to the sport of rackets, his compatriots quickly became interested in football and other more rewarding sports. They don’t have the ability to fight back from losing the fourth set at 16-18 in the tiebreaker after five match points and go on to win the fifth set in a grand slam final.
“During my father’s time they had a really good number of tennis players. I think for a while they had like five top 10 players. Now it’s completely different. We don’t have that many players in Sweden, it’s a bit sad because we’re a really good tennis country, I think your your mentality isn’t so good anymore, Leo said.
“A lot of Swedish players quit tennis around 18-19 because they think it’s too hard to get through the pros. Of course it’s hard, you really have to fight to get to the top. I think the mentality has to be better.
“I think we’ve become too comfortable (sic) in our country to get to the top. So I think we need to focus a little bit on the mental side. Yeah, I think that’s the main thing or difference. , from his days.
“Tennis isn’t that big in Sweden anymore, it’s actually not a strange thing, unfortunately.”
If you have to characterize Leo Borg in a word, that would be it.
It’s one thing to deal with the pressure of living up to a famous last name, it’s quite another to embrace it and give it your best day in and day out – warranting admiration, perhaps earning a label.
“It’s a special thing for me to have a father like him,” Borg said of his father, a tennis legend. Bjorn Borgduring a video call from his hometown of Stockholm on Thursday.
Sweden will host India in the World Cup Group I tie on Saturday and Sunday.
“He’s done a lot of things in his time and I feel really blessed because he has all the information I need to get (from dad and coach).
“Of course he’s been really supportive and he’s always been there for me on (the) court and off the tennis. He’s actually been the best dad. So I’m pretty, really proud of him and he’s got a really special place in my heart.”
On the tennis front, there is no comparison between father and son.
Borg Sr., now 68, lifted Sweden to its maiden Davis Cup victory in 1975 when he was just 19 years old. If his 33 singles victories are the record in tournament history, his six French Open trophies – four of them in a row – five Wimbledon wins in a row put him on a whole different level.
Anyone else, in any walk of life, would have walked away from borrowed stardom and the harsh scrutiny that comes with it. Borg junior has decided not only to play the sport, but also to succeed in it.
Currently ranked 603, Leo had risen to 334 on the ATP list last year before losing form. He has regained some of his level and motivation by winning the title and finishing second on the miserable ITF circuit in Thailand in recent weeks, jumping 169 places in the rankings.
Leo, 21, spoke of a “simple” piece of advice he received from his father long ago.
“I was really young, he said: ‘It’s really simple, never stop fighting until the last point.’ And that’s been very good advice, just fight the whole match and also life outside of tennis. It’s a really simple thing. , but it has been really big.”
Amazingly, Leo hasn’t watched videos of his dad playing.
“Obviously I’ve watched some things, but it’s true, I’ve never looked for a video of him or anything like that. Yeah, (it’s) funny, I know,” he smiled.
The young man’s humble journey on the tennis court may also explain the current sorrows of the sport in Sweden. Because Sweden is not only Borg’s country, it is also Zlatan’s home.
Although Leo, who played football until the age of 12, did not doubt his commitment to the sport of rackets, his compatriots quickly became interested in football and other more rewarding sports. They don’t have the ability to fight back from losing the fourth set at 16-18 in the tiebreaker after five match points and go on to win the fifth set in a grand slam final.
“During my father’s time they had a really good number of tennis players. I think for a while they had like five top 10 players. Now it’s completely different. We don’t have that many players in Sweden, it’s a bit sad because we’re a really good tennis country, I think your your mentality isn’t so good anymore, Leo said.
“A lot of Swedish players quit tennis around 18-19 because they think it’s too hard to get through the pros. Of course it’s hard, you really have to fight to get to the top. I think the mentality has to be better.
“I think we’ve become too comfortable (sic) in our country to get to the top. So I think we need to focus a little bit on the mental side. Yeah, I think that’s the main thing or difference. , from his days.
“Tennis isn’t that big in Sweden anymore, it’s actually not a strange thing, unfortunately.”
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