Borg blocking out comparisons with his famous father
His father is arguably one of the greatest players to pick up a tennis racket, but Leo Borg, son-of five-time Wimbledon champion Bjorn, won’t be drawn on any comparisons with his better-known namesake ahead of his Junior Wimbledon qualifying debut this week.
Borg attracted attention after being handed a wild card into the qualifying event for Junior Wimbledon, which starts tomorrow, and the sixteen-year-old junior world No. 356 can’t wait to get started.
“I just try to block it out and focus on my game,” he said on Wednesday when asked about the weight of his family name. “I play now, so I just focus on me.
“Of course it’s very fun to get this opportunity. I’m thankful… very thankful. It’s going to be really nice to play here in qualifying at Roehampton. I'm hoping for the best.”
Borg senior, a tennis sensation who won his first Grand Slam title aged just 18 at Roland Garros in 1974, was a rare creature in the tennis world for enjoying tremendous success on both grass and clay, having collected six Roland Garros and five Wimbledon titles – winning both back-to-back on three occasions.
But, unlike Dad, Leo Borg admits that grass isn’t a surface to which he is particularly accustomed. Despite compiling an 18-9 win-loss record on a hard court and 14-9 on clay, he has never played a grass court match at junior level.
“This is my first year on grass,” he said. “I [found it] difficult in the beginning, but it’s starting to feel a little bit better. It’s good now, but I have to say clay is my best surface.”
It takes a brave youngster to attempt to forge a career in a sport dominated by your own father, but Borg insists the only pressure he feels comes from within. He’ll continue to hone his craft at junior level with plans to make occasional forays into the professional realm on the ITF World Tennis Tour in the coming months, but says he'll “take things day by day”.
Before all that, there’s the chance to qualify for junior Wimbledon, and he’s in confident mood.
“Of course, I want to win all of it,” he said of this week’s event. “There are so many good players so it’s very tough, but I hope to win my matches, have fun and play a good game.”