For fourteen years, their rivalry passionate and divided America in the 1970s and 1980s. As the new generation of tennis players meets on the clay courts of Roland-Garros, flashback to the clash of two court rebels.
00:00 Connors and McEnroe, two tennis champions
00:19 🎾 The story of tennis champions Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe and the influence of their backgrounds and families on their careers.
05:59 💥 The intense rivalry between McEnroe and Connors that changed American tennis.
13:07 🎾 The Connors-McEnroe rivalry in tennis revolutionized the sport in the United States and attracted a passionate fanbase.
17:53 💰 The rise of sports marketing in tennis and the financial success of players like John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors.
23:24 🎾 Professional tennis has become more physically demanding and competitive, leading to a rise in professional behaviors and a decrease in player interaction with the nightlife during tournaments.
28:43 🎾 McEnroe's temperament and psychological game were key elements in his strategy to challenge opponents and disrupt their play.
34:08 ⚠️ The rise of McEnroe and Connors in tennis and their controversial behavior on the court.
40:44 🎾 The rivalry between Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe divided the American public in the 1980s, with New Yorkers favoring McEnroe and the white working class supporting Connors.
46:20 🎾 The rivalry between Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe in tennis was intense and profitable for both players, but they never became friends.
Director: Jean-Christophe Chatton
I met Jimmy Connors at the Fabulous Forum in Los Angeles while being on a field trip from my high school tennis team. I had a preconceived belief about him that was totally wrong. He was the most gracious person I ever met. I will always adore him for his kindness.
Jimmy was a hard nose competitor. He did have a quintessential American vibe like Pete Rose had in baseball. He was the kid from down the street who played tennis when we were all playing baseball and street football. Sometimes he'd join in until his Mom would yell at him to come home cause he had a big tournament that weekend. The tennis world didn't know how to take his brashness. But he was the guy I could relate to and and one of the reasons I became fascinated with the sport.
Many years ago while in california taking a bike ride with my two year old daughter on the back i came across Jimmy Conners alone hitting against a wooden backboard..I told her she was watching one of the Greatest tennis players ever to play the game.She does not remember.But I do! Thanks for the memory.
Nothing impressed me more than Jimmy Connors. This man would make you feel like you were right there taking backhands. Jimmy never had that good of a serve but his returns were the best in the business.
Yes, his returns were most enviable!
Wow they put on a great show. The Connors of 76-77 is a great match up for the MAC of 84. Both incredible
When the robot said McEnroe beat Conners in the 5th inning I instantly knew she was a huge tennis 🎾 fan😂😢
Super reportage, intense et révélateur, bonne continuation
It was the simple hard work vs the Genious, making it fun to watch. I cheered for the hard work Connors but especially now , repect both players for what they did for Tennis.
Exactly 💯👍
Chat GPT documentary if ever there was one
They were both Amazing. I watched them all the time. I loved both of them. And Chris Evertt.
Excellent and interesting !!!
super Sendung und mal richtig mit Saft. Toll, dass ihr meinen Freund Kradi mal dabei hattet. Er ist ein feiner Mensch!
i'm a big lifetime fan of jimmy's, but i will say the us open 1980 semi was the greatest tennis match i've ever seen. you can say what you want but those 2 always had you out of your seat multiple times
I loved Jimmy Connors. He was my favorite athlete growing up in the 70’s. This documentary did a very good job of capturing the essence of this rivalry from the perspective of the French. They interviewed key people in both men’s life; John’s brother and father; (Jimmy was brought up by a wolf pack.) They interviewed men he played against. What they say is truth, and makes this documentary more honest than compelling. It is not stereotypical. This is based on the actions of Jimmy and John. This is who they were, and they did a good job with that. You have to remember that this is how the French viewed them.
The thumbnail for this video looks like it's from the 1981 Benson & Hedges Championship Final. It was a pretty big event back then. I remember watching that match on USA Network as a 15 year old. It stands out as one of the greatest matches I've ever seen. The quality of play, and the drama from that match, stands out to me. This rivalry is an amazing one.
I remember it and Mac tanked it he was on weed Connors was clean never did drugs Great man off court Ive met Connors very humble man... Mac is a lost soul
at the end of this video little tears came out of my eyes...
Excellent
Ambos foram absolutamente divinos. Sem mais comentários.
I hated this documentary. I lived through this era of tennis as a young teenager, am from St. Louis ( across the river from when Connors grew up), these absurdly inaccurate presumptions are tragically off-mark, and based on the saddest stereotypes. I followed McEnroe and Connor's games all along, and this 'documentary' is like a fifth grader trying to do a book report on Ulysses.
I agree. A very poor production full of errors and bad AI. These guys were great to watch and great for tennis. Sure they were intense but they were both brilliant. It’s what tennis lacks now, personalities.
@@liamgross7217 Bummer I was psyched. Actually it's not that bad.
The translation is awful. I’d like to see it with the original French narration. It’s probably a lot better than this monstrosity.
@@stephenchalmers71 I am French and I can tell you: it's very bad. Bacharan is supposed to be an expert on the United States. She peddles all kinds of prejudices about Americans, about American politics, and she knows nothing about tennis.😁
😅😅😅😅
SUPER ces deux Messieurs, jamais vu cette façon
are there compilations of all this john , connors or nastase craziness ? can i watch it somewhere?
Connors war Tennis Arbeiter, wie Nadal, Mcenroe war Genie 🏆
0:10 The commentator says "America in the 1950's", but that photo is clearly from much earlier, like the 1920's
J'étais un grand fan de Jimmy Connors, c'était mon joueur préféré mais un jour j'ai vu un reportage sur lui. Il montrait comment il avait détruit psychologiquement Aaron Krickstein, son ami et partenaire d'entraînement. C'était sale... Jumbo avait fini sa carrière depuis longtemps mais je ne l'ai plus regardé avec les mêmes yeux, quand bien même ce fut un très grand champion dont j'apprécie toujours l'exceptionnelle combativité. Notamment contre l'insupportable (hi, hi, hi, je tease) John McEnroe, le joueur préféré de mon frère ; ça ne s'invente pas !
both are very good.
I like how the translation and audio is done by AI but not always accurate (soccer was mistaken for US football). Very smart!
miss that era of tennis
"When I break my leg I will let you know, alright." Mac the very best!! This was tennis, not NFL Football. McEnroe raised the stakes for all!!
sounds more like whining
If I had been the judge, I'd have responded : "So, break a leg !", in the figurative sense of course !
I miss John McEnroe’s temper tantrums. 😂
I remember though that John McEnroe very seldom had any temper tantrums when he played against Bjorn Borg or Mats Wilander .
@@AnneNissen-lh1dgMac never respected Connors like he did Borg or Mats. That is why Jimmy hated him because he acted like a two year old while playing Connors when Connors was twice the player Wilander was and equal to Bjorn.
The thing about connors is that, to my knowledge, he has never spoken ill of him after his career, whereas mcenroe has referred to him as an ahole. In my opinion, that makes connors the bigger man. On the other hand, mcenroe never made the obscene on court gestures connors did in his youth. And it's hypocritical for connors to have a go at mcenroe, when he was no angel himself, especially in his younger days. Another good thing about mcenroe was that he always made time for the davis cup, and never played in south africa during the time of the apartheid regime. As a result, i got more respect for mcenroe as a person as i do for connors.
I loved the drama & tennis was more fun n to watch!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️
John McEnroe contributed to the growth of tennis by his work as a commentator. He has been a great teacher and mentor to millions of players by sharing his intuition and iq. As far as records go, John's titles in double and Davis cup put him in the class of Federer, Nadal and Novak. Jimmy is a legend. Players today have much to learn from their basic and classic fundamentals. They are both greats of our sport and appreciated by players and fans alike.
My two favorites and Borg is third.
Ai?
Yeah tennis lost a little of its edginess when Americans started sucking at it. We played that aggressive swashbuckler game like a pirates dual.
Très bonne vidéo, même si cela manque un peu de comparaison technique.
49:53 "Hold my beer", says Nick Kyrgios.
Genial
Jimmy was a great player but McEnroe all the way! I love John's talent, mind and passion. McEnroe is and was brilliant!
Conners was my first favorite tennis player. I loved his brashness and fighting spirit. I began hitting two handed BH and set up points from the baseline. When Mac came along I thought Conners way seems like too much work as Macs game seemed kinda casual and cool. It's like a ball player who looks so nonchalant so I started hitting a one hand BH and even did the side saddle serve like Mac quite good. His style seemed like you could play forever without killing yourself which he still does amazingly well.
Yes, Mac was an artist on the court. @@willkittwk
I would have loved Connors knuckles in Macs mouth. He wouldn’t be able to blab with knuckles in his mouth and it almost happened in Chicago. Connnors walked over the net and got in Macs face. 98 percent of the fans were hoping for it by then.
Min 14:44..."That euphoria, that delirious public" ......was the moment when Guillermo Vilas defeated the defending champion Jimmy Connors in the final, 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-4), 6-0 to win the men's singles tennis title at the 1977 US Open.
Always wanted a Connors/McEnroe documentary... But this thing was a pitiful monstrosity
why ?
Agreed.
And the competition between Bion Borg and MacEnroe also..at 80, 81...
Only thing here that gives me pause, Jimmy doing that "hand gesture".
Os dois foram grandes jogadores de personalidades fortes. Não eram e nunca quiseram ser gentlemans. Cada um enriqueceu e ilustrou o tênis mundial. Dizer que esse foi melhor que aquele é procurar explicar de que é feito o Universo. Podemos sim ter a nossa opinião, mas não a certeza absoluta.
I'm a Jimmy Connors fan ❤
me too
back when tennis had character
Really in the 50's. Ali, started golden gloves in the 50's. Doesn't start contending for Olympics till 60's JFK only US Pres recipient of the purple heart from WW2 was assignated in 63' Young Mac was fueled by Wimbledon defeat with Connors. Borg was the beast to beat amongst the greats of the day and so on.
The subtitle translation and partially the audio translation is horrible
Another thing they have in common, both are good speakers. I hear McEnroe a lot more, not sure why Connors is not commentating more, he is really good.
Jimmy Connors book is probably the best sports autobiography I have ever read.......
Jimbo - no one else.
Connors did not retire until 1996. He was winning matches at 46.
14:46 Guillermo Vilas ....
wtf with the translations? O_o
In Spain McEnroe was not loved by sports commentators in the 80s, due to his "bad manners." However, people loved to watch him play. He could be rude but he was clearly a fair guy. He was the player who brought tennis to the status of art. Nobody has bowled like him. He will always be the best player. Sorry Federer. Connors lost the '75 US Open in 3 sets against Orantes, nothing more to say. Maybe he was a great player, of course.
Good video, but what's up with the robot narrators ???
I hate that. They always pronounce names wrong, and that makes it obvious.
Borg Macenroe was the real one I thought
Muy buen video
I always thought Connors’ rival was Bjorn Borg and McEnroe’s was Boris Becker.
Connors main rivals were McEnroe and Borg. McEnroe was past his prime when Becker arrived on the scene
@@vijayiyer8518 Is that right? Wow! What about Lendel? I thought McEnroe had another nemesis besides Connor. I thought Connor was old by the time McEnroe was rolling.
@@jorgejohnson451 in the beginning of his career, which was the early 80's, lendl lost to Connors, McEnroe and Borg in several grandslams. Lendl's breakthrough came in the Roland garros final of 1984. By that time, Connors career was in decline.
@@vijayiyer8518 Perhaps you’re right. But Connors was pretty much the “old man” of this group. Connors, born 1952 Bjorn Borg, born 1956 John McEnroe, born 1959 Ivan Lendl, born 1960 Boris Becker, born 1967
According to me, Lendl was McEnroe best rival.
Intéressant mais c’était un combat de princes Un combat américain Le roi du monde à cette époque était suédois Je jouais au tennis de compétition adolescent à cette époque et le boss c’était Borg, aucun doute là-dessus Donc ce n’est pas un duel de suprématie mondiale véritablement On ne peut s’empêcher de penser à Borg qui écrasait tout et qui s’est désintéressé du tennis a 26 ans Sans compter les événements douteux des US Open
Ces rivalités nationales de haut niveau, elles sont partout sauf en France. Suisse, Allemagne, Espagne, Brésil, argentine, Italie, Suède.... suisse... Ces champions ayant gagné un grand chelem et top 3 ,ils sont partout sauf en France Roumanie, Serbie, autrichien, Australie... Angleterre.... Pauvre tennis masculin français
Kombi was No humbug
La rivalidad qye cambió el tennis si fue con McEnroe, pero en contra de Bjorn Borg.
Dommage que les sous-titres soient trop souvent différents de ce qui est dit par les intervenants, ce qui déforme les propos réellement entendus, et qui rappelle google translation à ses débuts, à vous faire éclater de rire.
Connors era uno str.
Jim was THE best hotet so far
That time win grand slams not easy as today and huge competition.If Djokovich like players played in 80's then McEnroe Connors destroyed him in wimbledon center court
Yeah ? how are the tv ratings now ??????????????
I must admit that the day McEnroe stopped playing, I lost interest watching tennis.
Today to many players it seems
Is this a documentary made by AI? The voice overs are treacherous
Jimbo?
noone watched soccer games at that time in the US...
everyone has his or her own.....not their own
Connors and McEnroe, I didn't like either. For me it was Bjorn Borg who was the best and he didn't create a side show.
Ibeta Will Five set without parol
This is AI generated. Skip it.
Donotplay with me
Roger Federer è stato, e sarà sempre, il piu completo e forte giocatore di tutti i tempi ! Borg il più forte mentalmente. Connors e Nadal i due più grandi lottatori. McEnroe il più forte tecnicamente. Djokovic il più solido e forte fisicamente.
Both of them learned from Ilie Năstase. He was the one who revolutionised the tennis not these two.
mac was a pot head the words of Chrissie Hynde His down fall peaked at 25 Connors clean no drugs played until 40
For as many people ragging on this video it's mostly good but for the stupid AI shit. Some footage rarely seen as well and Cash never one to mince words hopping in there too it's All Good.
WHO? is connors mouthing off to at 1:40-1:47 ??!!
John Mc was nuts but a genius. Jimmy was an a-h.ll
Noevrtnothe real kombi (thsnks god)
Hello mat
Oh, I get it now. Made by the French.
Please coment Jimmy con
Bah là réussite marketing des chaussures ne commence pas avec mc enroe mais Stan Smith 😊
In 2023, apparently the Stan Smith is still the best selling tennis shoe. One of the players at Wimbledon gave the Duchess of Cambridge a pair of Stan Smith's for her son.
The rivalry that destroyed tennis. Two soiled brats who destroyed the game. I am so glad we moved on to class acts like Federer and Nadal.
Good players technically, bad human beings. Just look at a Federer and the difference becomes palpable, another league.
AI narration is a no for me . This is sounds terrible, sorry .
Same, hoax to bail out 1/3 of the way through.
Jimbo all the way.
No evercareas
Jim someamsthshotsever
Pleasdontplaysleep
Haveyoyevermet bo Svensson etk
"Best Documentary" - you need to work on your script. Really not good.
Wonderful voice over, just wonderfully wrong!
Morsure de Connor a Mc Enroe Frere enbemi
Never have the French try to interpret American social dynamics. They seem to always use the 'transference' method, and their social politicsj are so different they never get it right. And Best Documentary can't spend the $ for an AI that can pronounce 'McEnroe' correctly?
Strange comment because I think that this tendency is more than often the characteristic of the "americans" ...
so you American people pronounce correctly French people names ? Let me laugh...
11:49 Connors loses eleven games in a row. Nope, McEnroe loses eleven games in a row.
The journalist doesn't say that, at least in French : she says "Connors *avale* 11 jeux d'affilée", which literally means "Connors *swallows* (up) 11 games in a row" which is colloquial language that means *"wins"* , not "loses". So the journalist is right and you're wrong in thinking she's wrong 🙃
@@ichthusnasarah5079 Yes, but I am referring to the text in English which clearly states: 'Connors loses 11 games in a row', both in spoken language as in the subtitles. We're both right 🙂
@@teammccready Ah ok ! So the French translation is better than the original ! 😄
Deep America?
Jimwasevilhimself
Great tennis players these two.....but embarrassingly lacking manners or grace. McEnroe shows class as a commentator. Connors is monosyllabic by comparison.