HEARTBEATS

A reserved tennis champ speaks up. 

Borg tells interesting stories from his stellar career, but he’s most expressive when describing his inner turmoil. A fantastically fit athlete—the title nods to his low resting heartbeat—the self-possessed Swede was nicknamed “Burken,” or “the Jar,” because he kept “the lid on” his feelings. Fascinatingly, this was a conscious decision born of the belief that “showing emotion could be a weakness the opponent would exploit.” But it concealed the “rollercoaster going on inside.” By 1980, atop his sport, fame and media scrutiny fed “a creeping sense of panic.” He retired at 26, a decision he regrets, for he “sank” even lower. He got “hooked” on cocaine, made some business mistakes, and now regards the 1990s as a “lost” decade. Though Borg was drug-free during his career, his “memories are fewer” about his biggest wins. When you play well, he explains, it’s “like you’re in a trance.” Accordingly, his accounts of his 11 major tournament titles are sometimes terse. He declines to explain, for instance, how he transcended his relative struggles on Wimbledon’s “fast grass” to eventually win five times. He divulges no hard feelings about his great rivalry with John McEnroe, instead sharing an Odd Couple-esque anecdote about pausing a match to counsel the high-strung American: “John, it’s only a game.” Borg is forthright about his failings as a father, insightful about the elite competitor’s mindset, and funny on puny 1970s paydays. He was so focused on the next challenge that he’d leave just-won trophies in hotels. He lugged a “Santa sack” containing $1 bills on a flight. Borg recently had prostate cancer surgery. He intends “to beat” the disease. As this likable book shows, he’s still a battler.

A beloved sportsman recalls big wins and secret struggles in this disarmingly vulnerable self-portrait.