Tennis Hall of Famers Speak and Play Tennis at Convocation

• John McEnroe, Michael Chang and Andy Roddick shared their testimonies, recounted matches and rivalries and their hopes for the future of tennis with Liberty students.
• They also played in a “King of the Court” match at Convocation and a PowerShare exhibition that evening.

Tennis legends John McEnroe, Michael Chang and Andy Roddick spoke about their experiences in tennis and their hopes for the future of tennis to students in Convocation Monday, Oct. 16.

 

According to the Chang Family Foundation’s website, Chang, 45, became a professional tennis player at age 15. Chang spoke about winning the 1989 French Open at 17 years old during a time when China was reeling from the Tiananmen Square incident — setting the record for becoming the youngest male tennis player to win a major championship.

 

“It was actually a very down time for Chinese people around the world,” Chang said.

 

According to CNN, Chinese troops opened fire on civilians in Tiananmen Square July 4, 1989, after weeks of demonstrations and killed an estimated hundreds or thousands of civilians. Chang said he watched the news anytime he had a break from playing or practicing.

 

“I realized that the French Open … was not about Michael Chang becoming the youngest male Grand Slam champion,” Chang said. “But the Lord really used it to put a smile upon Chinese people’s faces during a time in which there wasn’t a lot to smile about.”

 

During the French Open, Chang faced Ivan Lendl, who was ranked the No.1 player in the world at the time. Chang said he learned an important lesson in the tournament when his leg started cramping and he considered quitting the match.

 

“At that point … it was almost like the Lord was telling me, ‘Michael, what are you doing here? Do you realize that if you quit now … you’re going to quit again?’” Chang said. “So I said, ‘Okay, alright, Lord, I’m going to leave the winning and losing up to you. Whatever happens, happens. I’m just going to take things point by point.’ My goal was to go out and finish the race, finish that match.”

 

After that, Chang said the match started turning around. Chang won that match and three more to take the championship.

 

Chang said, as a believer, he tried to show love on and off the court. He said that, while many on the tour were not Christians, players respected each other, even when they came from different backgrounds.

 

“The great thing about playing on a tour is that we have tennis players from all walks of life,” Chang said.

 

McEnroe, 58, also shared some of the highlights from his career, including his rivalry with Swedish star Björn Borg. McEnroe said he had an epic match with Borg in 1980 at Wimbledon. While Borg beat McEnroe in 1980, McEnroe came back and beat Borg the following year.

 

“I love him … we’re still friends,” McEnroe said.

 

McEnroe also talked about his temper on the court. One time, McEnroe said he accidently hit the King of Sweden with one of the cups he threw at a tennis match. McEnroe said “it was okay” because the king was a fan of his.

 

“The danger is that … when John McEnroe gets upset, he actually plays better,” Chang said.

 

 

According to the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s website, McEnroe was ranked No.1 in the world in 1980, and went on to win 149 career titles before retiring in 1992.

 

Roddick, 35, said one of his highlights growing up was watching McEnroe, Pete Sampras, Jim Courier and Andre Agassi in the 1992 Davis Cup Finals.

 

For his own career, Roddick said winning the 2003 U.S. Open was amazing. In 2007, Roddick said he was part of the winning team for the Davis Cup, the last U.S. team to win. Roddick also said he made lifelong friends with some of the guys from that team. According to ESPN, Roddick won 32 singles titles and four doubles titles in his career.

 

After talking about highlights from their careers, the players discussed the future of tennis. Roddick and Chang both said the women, especially Venus and Serena Williams, are doing extraordinarily well, and Roddick said he hopes some healthy competition will rise among the young male athletes.

 

According to Roddick, for the American junior tennis players, the “worst case scenario is going to a beautiful university and being a popular guy on campus for four years.” Roddick said players from other countries have different experiences. Ana Ivanovic, for example, learned to play tennis in the bottom of a pool that had been drained.

 

After the Q&A session, President Jerry Falwell and David Nasser, the senior vice president for Spiritual Development, joined McEnroe and Chang for ‘King of the Court’ matches, a doubles match for at least six players where one team tries to score a point against the designated ‘kings’ to claim the title. Student Mary Kate Robertson and former Liberty No. 1 tennis player Dillon Segur also joined the contest.

 

Monday evening, James Blake joined Roddick, Chang and McEnroe for the PowerShares exhibition match. Blake beat Roddick then McEnroe to claim the win for the tournament.