Roy Emerson wasn’t planning to head west for the 1973 Fireman’s Fund International in Alamo, California. But his tennis-camp schedule opened up, so he took advantage of the free time and made a quick trip to the Golden State.
At the Pacific Southwest, the first leg of his two-tournament swing, Emerson turned in a performance typical of his 37-year-old self. He won a couple of singles matches, then lost in straights to Tom Okker. In the doubles, he paired with Ken Rosewall to reach the semis. He was still one of the best doubles players around: Even as a part-timer, he had picked up five titles in 1973 alone.
A week later in Alamo, the Australian veteran played like a younger man. He battled through a three-setter against Jeff Austin in the second round. He overcame a 5-7 first-set loss to Roscoe Tanner to advance through the quarters. In the semi-finals, Arthur Ashe took another 7-5 first set, but Emerson stormed back to win, 6-2, 6-1.
“I play better when I don’t play so much,” he said. “I can concentrate and enjoy it more if it isn’t week after week.” Alamo–the site of the Round Hill Country Club, outside of Oakland–was just his second tournament since July, and the value of the time off was evident.
On September 30th, Emerson’s opponent in the final was a man nearly two decades his junior, Sweden’s Björn Borg. Everything, it seemed, was new to the 17-year-old, but his learning curve was extraordinary. He had lost first-rounders to middling opponents in his two previous outings on California cement. Here, though, he demolished the big-serving Vladimir Zednik and outlasted third seed Tom Gorman.
Borg got off to a strong start in the final, as well. Despite losing four of the first five games, he reeled off five in a row to win the first set, 7-5. For the third match in a row, Emerson dropped the opener by the same score.
“An old body takes a long time to warm up,” he said.
Emmo started returning better, and he realized that Borg’s two-handed backhand often created opportunities for his own backhand volley–the bread-and-butter shot that had won a dozen major titles for the Australian. He cruised through the second set, 6-1.
An Emerson return, at 4-all in the third, proved to be Borg’s breaking point. At deuce, Emmo ran around a weak serve, blasted a forehand, and won the point. The Swedish teen double-faulted to hand his opponent the break. The veteran served it out for a 5-7, 6-1, 6-4 victory.
Emerson owned more than 100 career singles titles, but it had been awhile. How long? “You would have to ask me a difficult question, wouldn’t you?” said the champion. “Gosh, it’s been so long, I honestly can’t remember.”
Not counting exhibitions, it had been four years. His trophy haul had been doubles-only since the summer of 1969, when he ran off three titles in a row on European clay. He wasn’t about to change his schedule, though: He wouldn’t appear on a singles court again until March.
Borg, for his part, was satisfied with his second-place finish. “I play my own game and if I lose, I lose,” he said. “Next time, I’ll beat him.”
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This post is part of my series about the 1973 season, Battles, Boycotts, and Breakouts. Keep up with the project by checking the TennisAbstract.com front page, which shows an up-to-date Table of Contents after I post each installment.
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