“Watching him play on clay is fantastic,” Bjorn Borg says he sees himself the most in ‘incredible’ Rafael Nadal

Bjorn Borg was the king of clay in his prime. His style suited the red dirt perfectly, which helped him win six times (1974, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981) at the French Open. That stood as a record for a long time, until Rafael Nadal began to establish himself on the ATP Tour.

Nadal took to the surface like a duck to water. He has a 63-9 win-loss record in clay court tournament finals and has lost only four times in best-of-five-set matches on clay. He has also won a record 14 titles at Roland Garros, a feat that could stand the test of time.

In a recent interview, Borg was asked to pick one modern player who reminded him of himself. Unsurprisingly, the German named Nadal and cited his incredible prowess on clay as the reason for it.

I grew up on clay. Nadal grew up on clay. He’s the one. To see him play on clay courts, it’s so fantastic. He’s unbelievable. I can relate to how he knows how to move players around the court.

Bjorn Borg said (via The Athletic)

Borg has always spoken highly of Nadal. He recently praised the Spaniard for his achievement and marveled at Roland Garros record.

Bjorn Borg was happy to see Rafael Nadal break his French Open record

In the 1970s and early 1980s, Bjorn Borg dominated Roland Garros, winning six titles. For the next three decades, those six titles stood as the all-time record at the tournament. Rafael Nadal broke that record in 2012 when he won his seventh French Open title, and later added seven more to his name.

When asked if he was upset to see Nadal break his French Open record, Borg said that he was happy to see the Spaniard dominate the clay courts in Paris. He also opined that there will never be another player who is as good as Nadal on clay.

Not at all. Many people said at the time that probably no one would break my record. I said: 'Records are there to be broken.' That is an important aspect in sport. And then Rafa comes along and wins 14 times. You will never see another player who is so good on clay.

Bjorn Borg told Tennis Magazin

Besides his 14 French Open titles, Rafael Nadal has also won 12 Barcelona Open titles, 11 Monte-Carlo Masters titles, and 10 Rome Masters titles. Additionally, he has won at least one of the three clay court Masters tournaments every year between 2005 and 2014.

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