The BAMTP Belt: Part Two
“You CANNOT Be Serious”: The McEnroe-only Era
1982–1984: McEnroe 1.0: Kind of crazy, but one hell of a tennis player.
1984–1985: McEnroe 2.0: Greatest Season in American Men’s Tennis History, courtesy of Johnny Mac.
1985–1989: McEnroe 3.0: This guy is insane, but what else do we have??
Connors maintained a top ten singles ranking until the 1989 season, but for the majority of the Reagan era, the BAMTP belt belonged unquestionably to John McEnroe. From April 1979 to June 1986, McEnroe remained in the top three ATP singles rankings. He also held the number one world ranking in doubles eight separate times during the decade, including for a record 108 weeks in a row from April of 1979 to March of 1981[1]. McEnroe won both the US Open men’s singles and doubles titles in 1979 and 1981, and helped lead the US Davis Cup team to four titles in five years from 1978–1982. McEnroe’s talent on the court could not be denied, and with Jimmy Connors entering his 30s, American tennis fans quickly realized that the Era of McEnroe was nigh. Though McEnroe achieved much success prior to his unparalleled 1984 season, it was that year that he truly distinguished himself from his contemporaries.
McEnroe’s 1984 season remains pure tennis nirvana. His season started with a 42-match win streak and ended with an unprecedented 82–3 overall record. Though a crushing five-set loss to Ivan Lendl in McEnroe’s first and only French Open final appearance soiled his immaculate start to the season, McEnroe went on to win two other singles slams and one doubles slam[2]. He did not lose to another American player all season long, beating rivals such as Jimmy Connors five times[3], Vitas Gerulaitis three times, doubles partner Peter Fleming twice, Scott Davis, Brad Gilbert, and Van Winitsky[4]. Despite a stinging loss in the Davis Cup final to Sweden’s Henrik Sundstrum, McEnroe finished the year with 13 titles in all, and put a stamp on his year by getting revenge over Lendl in the 1984 US Open final[5].
Names like Scott Davis, Billy Martin, and Van Winitsky may be familiar only to the most hardcore of American Tennis Fans, but they were at the forefront of a generation of American men that failed to live up to their predecessors’ achievements. From 1985 to 1988, no American man won a singles Grand Slam title. Davis, who won the 1979 US Open Boy’s Singles title, did reach a career high of #11 in singles and #2 in doubles, but did not advance past the quarters of a major until 1991, when he won the Australian Open men’s doubles title. Winitsky, a two-time junior slam champion himself, peaked at #35 in the singles rankings and #7 in doubles. He made one slam final in his career, losing to the McEnroe/Fleming duo at the 1983 US Open. Players like Rick Leach, Ken Flach, and Robert Seguso may have won doubles slams and reached #1 in the doubles rankings, but they likely never captured the attention of fans the way McEnroe could. Even when McEnroe’s performance began harshly declining after 1985[6], it is likely that American fans neglected the successes of American doubles players. My example for this would be to cite the lack of coverage the Bryan Brothers have received. The Bryans, who have won more grand slams than any other American men in history, have never received attention equal to their contemporaries Andy Roddick or John Isner, despite having the more successful results. Thus, even though McEnroe’s performance declined significantly, his popularity amongst American fans likely remained greater than any other American player’s throughout the rest of Reagan’s second term. In fact, McEnroe’s second career as a tennis broadcaster, American tennis mentor, and entertainer are a testament to the popularity he achieved while playing tennis.
“Answer my question! The question, jerk!” “That ball was on the line!!” and of course “You cannot be serious?!?!” are just a few of the many choice phrases McEnroe yelled at chair umpires over the years. I have purposefully chosen to exclude the many expletives he also used, but know that his arsenal of swear words was equal parts extensive and versatile. McEnroe racked up $69,500 in fines during his career, was kicked off the Davis Cup team indefinitely after his loss to Sweden in 1984, and was suspended from competition for two months in 1987[7]. Nevertheless, McEnroe leveraged his on- and off-court notoriety to launch a highly successful post-tennis career. He has worked closely with many philanthropic enterprises over the years, most notably the City Parks Foundation in New York. Though McEnroe has mostly avoided public coaching roles, he served as US Davis Cup Captain from 1999–2000, and recently served briefly in Milos Raonic’s coaching box. He often works as a broadcaster for the various sports networks during Grand Slam events, and he has performed multiple cameos in hit movies such as You Don’t Mess with the Zohan and Mr. Deeds, and comedic television shows like Saturday Night Live and 30 Rock. More than just a tennis star, McEnroe became an American cultural icon. As such, it would require immense talent to take the BAMTP belt away from him. Luckily for American tennis fans, the most highly touted and exceptionally talented group of juniors in America’s history lurked just on the horizon.
“A New Day in America”: The Golden Era of US Men’s Tennis begins
1989–1990: Michael Chang
1990–1991: Pete Sampras
1991-Wimbledon 1993: Jim Courier
With both McEnroe and Connors in full decline by the end of the eighties, the prospects of American men’s tennis looked quite bleak. Players like Ivan Lendl, Boris Becker, and Stefan Edberg appeared primed to dominate the tour for the foreseeable future. American junior successes like Tim Trigueiro[8], Sammy Giammalva, Jimmy Brown, and John Letts[9] all failed to breakthrough the rankings, and even successes like Aaron Krickstein failed to win any grand slam singles titles. At the end of the eighties, America’s monopoly on men’s tennis was fading. In a short four-year span, however, the quartet[10] of Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Jim Courier, and Michael Chang saved American tennis from decline, and forever seized the BAMTP belt away from McEnroe.
The first to snatch the belt was Michael Chang. You know how in middle school there are always those few kids who go through puberty and mature really fast, then have to sit and watch as everyone else catches up? Compared to his contemporaries’ careers, Chang’s was the one that developed fastest. Fifteen-year-old Chang won the 1987 Boys 18’s Kalamazoo title over a field that included Sampras, Courier, Jeff Tarango, and Malivai Washington. Chang became the youngest male Grand Slam singles champion ever two years later, winning the 1989 French Open in stunning fashion. Chang defeated Pete Sampras in the second round, and needed five sets to overcome both Ivan Lendl and Stefan Edberg en route to his lone slam title. Chang was also a key member of the 1990 US Davis Cup Championship team. His dramatic comeback from two-sets down against Austria led the US into its first Davis Cup final since 1984. Chang won his finals match as well, leading the US to its first Davis Cup title since 1982[11]. Though Courier, Sampras, and particularly Agassi, had all experienced success on tour by 1990, Chang ended a Slam-less streak for American tennis that dated back to the 1984 US Open. If for no other reason, that alone should be enough to award him the BAMTP belt for one season.
Both Andre Agassi and Michael Chang were members of the 1990 Davis Cup team. Pete Sampras and Jim Courier were not. Why, then, are they the next two recipients of the BAMTP belt? Let’s start with Sampras. USTA president David Markin went out of his way after the Davis Cup final to also credit Pete Sampras for the resurgence in American men’s tennis[12]. He knew Sampras’ talent would soon lead to successful results. Soon enough, he was rewarded for his belief. Sampras lost the first to Chang the first five times they played, but after 1990, Sampras won eleven of their fourteen matches. During Sampras’ run to the 1990 US Open title, he dominated the likes of Lendl, McEnroe and Agassi with a fluid, explosive serve-and-volley game that oozed with potential[13]. After becoming the youngest US Open champion ever, Sports Illustrated selected Sampras to be on their cover, tagging his photo with the title “A Star is born.” Sampras soon appeared on TV shows with celebrities Greg Gumbel and David Letterman, and despite being ranked below Agassi and Courier in the ’91 and ’92 Year-End rankings respectively, was labeled “The Next Great American.”[14] Unfortunately for him, his game was not yet ready for the spotlight. Sampras failed to meet fans’ lofty expectations during the 1991 and 1992 seasons, and produced underwhelming results until his 1993 Wimbledon title. With Courier, Agassi, and Chang all entering their primes, the door was open for any of the three to take the BAMTP belt. Enter Jim Courier, the high-energy redhead with a funky forehand who refused to be forgotten.
By the start of the 1991 ATP season, all four of the young Americans had cracked the Top 25 in singles. The lowest of the four at number twenty-three was Jim Courier. To that point, Courier was the only member of the group who had neither made a Grand Slam singles final, nor been ranked inside of the Top 10. However, Chang, Agassi, and Sampras forewent the Australian Open that year. Courier, meanwhile, began his season with a five-set loss to world #1 Stefan Edberg in the round of 16. Courier’s results netted him many needed rankings points. He quickly erased one deficiency from his resume, and earned a top ten ranking by the start of April. At the 1991 French Open, all four American men were given top ten seeds in the singles draw. When Courier beat Agassi in the men’s final, the message to American Tennis Fans was loud and clear. American Tennis was back, and the future looked brighter than ever.
From the 1991 French Open to the 1993 Wimbledon, Courier went 5–0 against Agassi, 7–4 against Chang, and earned two of his four career wins over Pete Sampras[15]. All seven of Courier’s grand slam finals appearances occurred during this time period. On his run to the 1991 US Open final, Courier beat the defending champ Sampras in the quarters, and ended 39 year-old Jimmy Connors’ magical run to the semifinals. He won both the ’91 and ’92 French Opens, and took home titles at the ’92 and ’93 Australian Opens as well. On February 10, 1992, Courier became the first American man since John McEnroe to rise to number one in the ATP singles rankings[16]. During the 1992 Davis Cup season[17], Courier played singles ahead of fellow countrymen Chang and Sampras, and won the title-clinching match for the US team. He went 22–3 at majors in 1993, and made the final in three of the year’s four slams. Though Courier’s accomplishments are often overshadowed by the historic careers of both Agassi and Sampras, his twenty-eight month run from 1991–1993 was one of the finest in American men’s tennis history, and certainly warrants him the honor of the BAMTP belt.
Author: Alex Gruskin, host of the Great Shot Podcast
Editor: Max Fliegner, producer of the Great Shot Podcast
Editor: Max Rothman (sort of), co-host of the Great Shot Podcast
Editor: Lorenz Gahn (PAB), external consultant @ Great Shot Podcast LLC.
[1] Both Bryans, as well as Todd Woodbridge, have eclipsed his record since, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ATP_number_1_ranked_doubles_tennis_players#See_also
[2] Wimbledon singles/doubles, US Open singles, also DNP in 1984 Aussie Open
[3] As previously mentioned, McEnroe got his revenge on Connors in the ’84 Wimbledon finals
[4] Stats may be slightly off, as some past tournament draws couldn’t be found
[5] http://www.essentialtennis.com/a-look-back-john-mcenroes-1984-season/
[6] Only two doubles slam titles + ’92 Davis Cup title after 1985
[7] http://www.deseretnews.com/article/171029/FOR-THE-RECORD-MCENROES-TANTRUMS-AND-FINES.html
[8] 1985 US Open Boys Singles Champion
[9] Champions of the 1980, 1981, and 1982 Boys 18’s Kzoo titles respectively
[10] On principle, I refuse to call them the “Big 4”. I’m a millennial. Fed/Nadal/Djoker/Murray are my big 4. Sorry everyone.
[11] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Chang, consider condensing the previous two sentences
[12] http://www.nytimes.com/1990/12/03/sports/tennis-us-is-back-davis-cup-victory-shows.html
[13] This article is long enough as is, but I’d be remise if I didn’t at least briefly mention that developments in racquet technology, as well as increases in court speed, suited Sampras’s game style, and raised the appeal of his potential
[14] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NlradLtf5Q
[15] The most lopsided of the four’s head-to-head matchups, Sampras went 16–4 against Courier in their pro careers. (http://www.atpworldtour.com/en/players/fedex-head-2-head/pete-sampras-vs-jim-courier/S402/C243)
[16] http://www.atpworldtour.com/en/players/jim-courier/c243/overview
[17] The 1992 US Davis Cup squad could have challenged the 1992 US Olympic basketball team for the title of “Dream Team”. Courier/Agassi in singles, with Sampras/McEnroe in dubs. Hot damn, I like that team
