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Rod “Rocket” Laver won the Grand Slam twice (all four Slams in the same year). Milestone only equaled by Steffi Graf and Novak Djokovic (although the Serbian did not get it in the same season).
In 1965 he won 17 titles, in 1966 he won another 16 and in 1967 he achieved an incredible record of 19 tournaments! wins including Wimbledon, a tournament held in the All England not recognized by the ITF.
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However, his legacy crossed the net of the tennis world. After taking the sport to incredible levels of popularity and exposure in Australia, the country of his birth, in 1968 It was the main link for the fusion of the amateur and professional circuits, giving rise to what is now known as the Open Era.
According to collected data and statistics, Laver won 184 titles (44 amateur, 65 as a professional and 75 in the Open Era) but outside the limits of the field of play he had other issues to “fight” over. He sacrificed on several occasions his participation in the main tournaments in the world to fight for the rights of tennis players.
He obtained 11 Grand Slams just like the legendary Swede Bjorn Borg. He was number one in the world for 7 consecutive years and also won 5 Davis Cups, with teammates such as Roy Emerson.
Laver is 85 years old. Getty Images
His game? He promoted the serve and net combined with the “birth” of the topspin, Quite a novelty in the ’60s.
In 1981 he was inducted into the Hall of Fame, since 2000 the central stadium of the Australian Open bears his name and Roger Federer, one of the best tennis players of the Modern Era, created a competition like the Laver Cup to honor the legend. The one that turns 85 although it is forever.
2023-08-09 14:07:51
#Birthday #Rod #Laver #living #legend #tennis
