With a summer loaded to the brim with exquisite competitions in a plethora of sports – from the Olympic Games in Paris to the Euro Cup – one prestigious summer tournament is not to be forgotten: Wimbledon! In anticipation of the All England Club classic, Polo Ralph Lauren has launched a men’s apparel line celebrating some of the fan-favorite moments from one of the biggest events in all of sports.
The marathon match
How could a match on court 18, far removed from being the final game of the tournament, captivate not just tennis but sports fans around the globe? Easy, it simply went on longer than any other match in history. Way longer.
All in all, it took three days of tournament play, 11 hours and five minutes total, 183 games, a final set of eight hours plus, 114 aces, and 123 tennis balls for John Isner to defeat Nicolas Mahut by a ridiculous score of 6-4 3-6 6-7 7-6 70-68. No wonder the scoreboard malfunctioned half-way thru.
Becker wins it at 17!
Few athletes have managed to take the eyes of the sports-loving public in BSTN’s native Germany away from the ever-present king football, but in 1985 a 17-year-old with beach-blond, a pair of lowtop Pumas, and a rocket launcher for a right arm managed to do just that. The unranked Becker equally put the tennis world on notice, winning his first of six Grand Slam tournaments (including three at Wimbledon).
They were indeed serious
After his serve had produced a cloud of chalk dust that would have made LeBron James proud, an initially calm(-ish) John McEnroe – as well as the TV commentators and most of the spectators – were surprised to hear the chair umpire was of a different opinion, begging the question whether he was serious. Repeated a second time, with increased levels of frustration and therefore volume, McEnroe’s “You cannot be serious!?” launched his most infamous rage outburst and the most character-defining moment of his sports persona.
The tiebreak of all tiebreaks
While this memorable Wimbledon moment also involves John McEnroe, the reasons behind it as well as the result could not be more different: His 1980 final match against Björn Borg delivered a 20-minute, fourth-set tiebreak that ended up 18-16 in favor of the quick-tempered American who would end up losing the match but win his first (of three) Wimbledon titles the following year.
The Wimbledon Capsule by Polo Ralph Lauren
While this year’s edition of the legendary tournament does not start until July, you can already get your hands on a dedicated Wimbledon collection by Polo Ralph Lauren. See the limited-edition apparel capsule in its entirety via the button below!
