During his short but sweet career, Bjorn Borg cemented himself as a legend of the sport, winning 11 Grand Slam titles and reaching No. 1 in the world. The Swede was revered as one of the best players on clay and had an iconic rivalry with John McEnroe that transcended tennis.
But one person still believes he doesn’t “understand anything” about the sport – his own son, Leo. The 21-year-old is a tennis player in his own right but currently sits at No. 496 in the world and suffered a tough straight-set defeat in Barcelona Open qualifying this weekend.
A two-time former champion at the tournament, Borg was in the stands when Leo took to the Andres Gimeno court on Saturday. The 21-year-old received a wildcard into the preliminary rounds but couldn’t replicate his dad’s success in Barcelona.
Leo lost two close sets to British No. 2 Jacob Fearnley 7-5 7-6(1), in what was Fearnley’s first professional win on the clay.
While Borg was busy watching his son in action, he had other duties in Barcelona – he was there to receive the tournament’s new off-court ‘Fuera Pista’ award.
The 68-year-old also opened up about his relationship with Leo, revealing that the world No. 496 didn’t like asking for advice.
“Our son plays good tennis and travels a lot,” Borg told Mundo Deportivo.
“I said, ‘Do you have any questions? You can always come to me and ask me anything’. And my son says, ‘You don’t understand anything about tennis’.
“Fine, thank you very much. But you can come to me whenever you want. He has a good team that travels with him. And I’m there whenever he wants or needs me.”
Borg never expected that his child would take up tennis, as Leo initially gravitated towards another sport.
“He never watched a game with me. He started out playing sports, soccer, ice hockey, whatever,” he continued.
“My wife and I told each other he’d like soccer, that he’d play soccer and not tennis. He won’t play tennis because people will compare him to me and all that. So he played a lot of soccer, and we were very happy.
“But one day he told us he wanted to play tennis. Well, okay, he decided. And that’s how it started. Yes, it can be a problem to be compared to me or anyone else, but he likes tennis, he’s happy. And he plays it very well.”
Leo had a bright junior career, peaking at No. 12 in the world, winning titles, and competing in the boys’ Grand Slam draws.
He’s shown promise on the ITF circuit and boasts a career-high ranking of No. 334 but has struggled at ATP Tour level, winning just three matches so far.