QUOTATIONS BY OR ABOUT MATS WILANDER

1985

[The Swedish players] are not only dynamic and exciting to watch, but they are models of good sportsmanship who young people interested in the game can look up to. They play hard, as evidenced by their tremendous results, but they do so without the crybaby antics. Sweden should be very proud of these goodwill ambassadors for the country and the game of tennis. (Letter from fan, Tennis World, [1985])

Today's brilliant new generation of Swedish players comport themselves on the international circuit with great politeness and reserve. They tend to be introspective personalities on and off the court, and their ability to concentrate is uncanny. Wilander, it seems, has these qualities almost to the same degree as Borg. They make him (and most of the Swedes) extremely tough to beat in long matches on slow surfaces. Wilander is a consistent, unflashy baseline player who comes to the net only slightly more often than Borg - which is seldom, as opposed to rarely... What's more remarkable in this "me" generation of pro tennis is the Swedes' ability to balance team orientation and individual success. Certainly this quality was partly the reason for their winning the 1984 Davis Cup championship. No group of international players spends more time together, yet the commitment to individual excellence has not been diminished. This same duality is reflected in Swedish politics and economics. The Swedes' socialism is largely benign and flexible. It's produced a society that keeps the majority of its citizens on the same economic level, yet is doesn't stifle individual expression. (The Swedes: Uncanny Concentration [extracts]) (TENNIS, March 1985)

Much has been made of the comparison between Wilander and Borg. I think this is overstated. Borg was very competitive and self-centred. Wilander is more of a team man... (Arthur Ashe, TENNIS, [1985])

The current group of Swedish players are all very nice on court, and make a wonderful Davis Cup team. I am particularly impressed by Wilander, partly because he has been at the top the longest - by winning the French Open in 1982, when he was only 17, he was the first Swede to follow in Borg's illustrious footsteps, and that can't have been at all easy. All the Swedes were obviously inspired by Borg but I think Wilander, too, deserves a lot of credit for making it easier for the others. There are different ways of inspiring your compatriots. You can do it as a folk-hero to be revered from afar, like Borg, or in a more low-key way by being more "ordinary" and remaining part of the group on a day-to-day basis so that the others can see how you react to everything, and I think Wilander has done this. I have read a lot about the great camaraderie between all the current top Swedes. (Letter from fan, Tennis World, 1985)

[In the second round of the French Open 1985] Mats Wilander dined well on the pace Boris Becker fed him. The court became scarred and pock-marked as Wilander reminded the strong-armed German that playing shots is not the same thing as playing tennis. To put it another way, Becker played draughts while Wilander played chess - always thinking one or two moves ahead. (Rex Bellamy, "Game, Set and Deadline: a Tennis Odyssey") (Originally from The Times, June 1985)

Wilander (a bolder, more versatile champion than the Wilander of 1982) was too good for Ivan Lendl [in the 1985 French Open final] - a final bedevilled by a gusty wind. (as above)

Having the responsibility of being Mats Wilander's biggest admirer, I just wanted to say how deliriously ecstatic I was when he captured the French Open for the second time. Even after he got down a set, I knew he had the strength and determination to grind it out and win, showing the whole world what I knew he had in him all along. (Letter from fan, TENNIS 1985)

Mats Wilander, the leader of the "kiddie korps" of professional tennis, had already captured his second French Open singles crown when he arrived in Boston for his first U.S. Pro. The 20-year-old Swede swept through the 56-man field without the loss of a set, climaxed by his 6-2, 6-4 triumph over Argentina's Martin Jaite in the Monday evening final, which was played before what is becoming yet another Longwood tradition - a sell-out throng of hungry spectators. Wilander displayed a rock-steady baseline game, his established forte in over five years on the tour, but as he had done time and again in 1985, he flavoured his play with many well-timed forays to the net, which kept his 20-year-old opponent off balance. (Sandy Genelius, World of Tennis 1986)

Mats Wilander celebrated his win in Boston in July in the style to which he's now accustomed: with a champagne shower. At the French Open, the Swede and friends quaffed 25 bottles of the bubbly. (TENNIS, 1985)

"The greatest quote I ever read", says [Carling] Bassett, "came from Mats Wilander early this year. He'd lost a few matches and people were asking what was wrong. He told them: "Nothing's wrong. I don't want to be obsessed with no.1. I don't want to be like Borg. I'd rather take my time and have some fun along the way." I really agree with that. I can't imagine being 18 or 19 and no. 1 in the world. I mean, what's left for when you're 25 or 26?"  (TENNIS, July 1985)

If you watch a player like Wilander, who I think is now the best at recovery, you'll notice that he combines great compact strokes, footwork, and a high level of alertness and concentration, so that he's almost always in the right spot to return a ball.  (Stan Smith, TENNIS, [1985])

Wilander always seems to be in control of himself and his game...He doesn't let himself get rushed. He stays calm and keeps his mind on the match, no matter what. (TENNIS,[September 1985])

These Swedes [Wilander, Edberg and Nystrom] are delightful: fine sportsmen who get on with the job without fussing...and talk about the game and themselves with no hint of either conceit or false modesty. (Rex Bellamy, "Game, Set and Deadline") (Originally from The Times, August or September 1985)

For the local organisers...[the Stockholm Open 1985] was a great success in many ways. A capacity crowd followed the play throughout the week, and, for the first time in the 17-year-old history of the tournament, three Swedes advanced to the semis. Yet the best home player of the lot, Mats Wilander, surprisingly lost in the first round to Thierry Tulasne, the vastly improved Frenchman who had also beaten Wilander in the five-set final in Barcelona a few weeks earlier. This was the first time Wilander had disappointed a Swedish crowd since he earned his fantastic breakthrough as a 17-year-old champion at Roland Garros in 1982. He had won the Swedish Open in Bastad every time he entered (1982, 1983 and 1985), and also reached the final of the Stockholm Open in 1982 (lost to Henri Leconte), 1983 (defeated Thomas Smid) and 1984 (lost to John McEnroe). "I feel a little guilty to all my tennis friends here in Sweden", the deeply disappointed Wilander admitted after his 1-6, 6-2, 6-2 departure to Tulasne. (Bjorn Hellberg, World of Tennis 1986)

[At the Australian Open 1985] I was impressed by the way Wilander behaved towards Boris...after Boris's defeat by Michael Schapers. Boris was sitting in the dressing room, his head in his hands. Wilander, who had just finished his doubles match, came in. News of the sensational defeat had of course got around the players long ago. Wilander was quiet, said nothing, had a shower, changed his clothes, avoided making any noise, and went back out on tiptoe. (Gunther Bosch, Boris, 1987) 

Before their Australian Open final [in 1985], Edberg and Wilander breakfasted together and then - to the astonishment of tournament officials - warmed up together...Edberg said "We are good friends, and I'm not going to kill myself if I lose and neither is Mats." When the two walked off the court after the final, both were smiling and Wilander patted his victorious buddy on the shoulder. (Article on Edberg, TENNIS 1986)

1985 Adidas award for sportsmanship - Mats Wilander. (Quoted in World of Tennis 1986)