WIMBLEDON - Bjorn Borg, Boris Becker, Pete Sampras - Golden Years Special | Daily Mail Online
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What an image this is, with Bjorn Borg celebrating after beating American John McEnroe in an epic 1980 final. The victory sealed a fifth successive title for Borg. The five-set match featured a marathon fourth-set tie-break that the BBC treated viewers to for decades during rain breaks. The Swede won 11 Grand Slam titles, with six French crowns, before retiring early at the age of 26
Tempestuous American John McEnroe will not only be remembered for his brilliance on the court - which brought him three Wimbledon titles - but also his abrasiveness and temper, which made him the scourge of umpires everywhere. Here he is complaining during a semi-final clash with his great rival Jimmy Connors in 1980. The crowd don't seem to mind the outburst, in fact they appear to be having a good time
Here is a view from one end of Centre Court during the 1948 men's final between American Bob Falkenburg and Australia's John Bromwich, who is in the foreground. Falkenburg won a hard-fought final in five sets. Falkenburg was one of life's achievers - he also founded the fast food chain 'Bob's', which introduced fast food and ice cream to Brazil and was a very fine amateur golfer too, good enough to make 14 holes-in-one
Another Wimbledon legend is Pete Sampras, who won seven titles in eight tournaments between 1993 and 2000 - here he is throwing his shirt into the crowd after beating Croatia's Goran Ivanisevic in the 1998 final. Amazingly, the American's seven titles didn't stay as a record for long, with Roger Federer also winning seven titles in the last decade
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There was barely a dry eye in the house when Australian Pat Cash famously clambered up the stands to see his coaching team and family after beating Ivan Lendl to win the 1987 title. Many players have followed the tradition since, but Cash paved the way. His beaten opponent, Lendl, won eight Grand Slam tournaments but never managed to win at Wimbledon
Billie Jean King, then Billie Jean Moffitt, in action at Wimbledon during the 1965 tournament, where she reached the semi-finals. King would go on to win the title six times in a wonderful career that brought her 12 Grand Slam titles in all. She is also remembered for her campaigning off the court. King was a strong advocate for sexual equality, famously winning a Battle of the Sexes match against Bobby Riggs in 1973, and was also the founder of the Women's Tennis Association in 1973
Something else that has remained a factor at Wimbledon is the large queues outside - the big difference being that there was a time fans could queue to actually watch the final. Here, fans are entertained by a busker as they patiently wait to watch the 1950 men's singles final between American Budge Patty and Australia's Frank Sedgman. Patty won in four sets, with the 6–1, 8–10, 6–2, 6–3 result rather a bizarre one
Here's another interesting exercise in comparing then and now, with this 1959 aerial shot of the All England Club. The sight of the intimate old No 1 court (just above Centre Court) may bring back memories. And you may also notice the old No 2 court, which famously became known as the 'Graveyard of Champions'
Some things don't change - even though there's a roof on Centre Court these days, much of the conversation during the next two weeks will still be about the weather. In this 1938 picture, one spectator braves the rain. You always find a few optimists down at SW19, regardless of the weather
These ladies are enjoying a cup of tea while waiting in the queue to watch the men's singles final in 1957 between fellow Australians Lew Hoad and Ashley Cooper. It didn't turn out to be a very exciting contest that summer - Hoad won 6–2, 6–1, 6–2
It's fair to say that whether you enjoyed it or not, Sir Cliff Richard's intervention during a rain break at the 1996 tournament gave us an indelible Wimbledon memory. Various stars and former stars of the women's game, including Martina Navratilova and Conchita Martinez, were happy to join in, as Sir Cliff ran through his back catalogue. He's either bowing or taking requests here