Remember "The Rocket" by Partab Ramchand Aug 27, 2009
Forty years! Has it really been that long? And yet I can remember the events associated with Rod Laver’s unprecedented second Grand Slam in 1969 so clearly that it could well have happened yesterday. Once tennis was thrown open to professionals in 1968 and `The Rocket’ was back there was considerable interest in what Laver could achieve. He had turned pro at the end of 1962 after helping Australia to retain the Davis Cup with a 5-0 whitewash of Mexico. That was the year he had emulated Don Budge and achieved the Grand Slam – the winning of all the four majors in the same year. The tall American had accomplished the feat in 1938 and 24 years later it was Laver who achieved the rarest of rare feats to trigger off the argument as to whether he was the greatest-ever tennis player. The debate was halted as Laver joined Jack Kramer’s pro circuit and from 1963 to 1967 was lost to the amateur game as it was then christened. By 1968 administrators finally came to terms that Open tennis’ time had come and Laver, Ken Rosewall, Lew Hoad and other pros were back in action on the showcase courts at Wimbledon and other majors. By August 1969 the arguments grew shriller in Laver’s favour. The left-hander won Wimbledon in 1968 with a straight set victory over his compatriot Tony Roche for his third title (he had also won it in 1961). His progress at the US Open was halted by an inspired Cliff Drysdale who defeated Laver in five sets. All the same when 1969 started it was obvious that Laver would be the man to beat – and watch for stupendous feats. He did not disappoint his numerous fans. He duly won the Australian and French Opens with victories over Andres Gimeno and Rosewall in the title rounds and made it three out of three with a four-set victory over fellow Australian John Newcombe at Wimbledon. Could he now take one more step and achieve the Grand Slam for an unprecedented second time? The suspense continued to build with each round that Laver won. It was not an easy draw but nothing could stop The Rocket. In the quarterfinals he got the better of Roy Emerson in four sets. That set up a semifinal clash with the defending champion Arthur Ashe. Laver knocked him out in straight sets and now only Roche stood in his way as he surged towards the unparalleled feat. By August 1969 I was a rookie reporter with a newspaper in Madras (now Chennai) and eager to learn at the earliest whether my hero had indeed accomplished the feat I opted to be on the night shift with a senior. A flash finally filtered through the teleprinter (no computers in those days) a little past midnight that Laver had defeated Roche in four sets to achieve the impossible. The sports page was ready to go to bed but now it obviously had to be remade. I joined my senior in writing a little longer report giving the background of the feats achieved by Budge and Laver earlier and we carried a banner headline LAVER MAKES TENNIS HISTORY alongside a double column picture of the record breaker. Forty years have passed and while only Andre Agassi and Roger Federer since Laver’s time have won all four major titles no one has been able to accomplish the Grand Slam – winning all the four the same year. Laver’s unique achievement at having done it not once but twice is the feat most mentioned by tennis followers while arguing that he is the greatest of all time. I for one will always find it easier to argue for Laver than against him.