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23 August 1973, the 26th national day of the Socialist Republic of Romania, marked 29 years since "our troops turned their guns against fascism", as many of us learned in school. But in the history of Romanian sport and world tennis it remains a landmark, being the date when Ilie Nastase became the number 1 in the ATP ranking.
"Everyone who came to my house and saw that prize said to me: 'Come on, sir, you arranged with them to give you the prize on 23 August, Romania's national day.' Nobody thought it happened just then," recalls in an interview, for AGERPRES, the best Romanian tennis player, the athlete who won over 100 tournaments, of which only 64 recognized, the rest being conquered before the establishment of ATP, the world organization of professional players, agerpres reports.
And the joy of playing tennis is at the top of his list of achievements, being often self-taught.
"I was lucky that I was born at Progresul, there at BNR (tennis field, ed. n.), and every day when there were matches there I would go, 30 meters from home to the fields, and watch. I watched tennis a lot before I started playing. And my best coach was the wall, because I was playing against the wall. Because if you don't hit it well in the wall, you have to run after it in the back, and I was focused on hitting the wall well to get the ball back," Nastase told AGERPRES.
At the top of the world rankings for 40 weeks, from 23 August 1973 to 2 June 1974, when he was dethroned by Australian John Newcombe, Nastase does not want to be compared to Simona Halep, who spent 64 weeks as WTA No. 1, because "everyone is on his own slice, she in girls, me in boys." And he says he wouldn't have preferred to play tennis today, when the prizes are incomparably bigger.
Regarding the performance of ranking for the first time in the history of tennis on the first place in the world, the Romanian state did not reward him even with simple congratulations. In return, he received a "special pension" of 1,435 lei per month.
Regarding the former WTA No. 1, Simona Halep, who awaits the verdict after testing positive for Roxadustat, Nastase says that the Romanian is far from having ended her career, having chances to return after a possible suspension.
AGERPRES: Mr. Nastase, it's been 50 years since you became world #1...
Ilie Nastase: But what day is it?
AGERPRES: Yes, 23 August.
Ilie Nastase: No, sir, it is the 23rd of August, Romania's national day in our times, when you were younger. Romania celebrated its national day on August 23rd. Everyone who came to my house and saw that prize said to me: 'Come on, sir, you arranged with them to give you the prize on August 23rd, Romania's national day.' No one believed it had happened. It's nice in a way that it happened on the national day.
AGERPRES: Have these 50 years passed quickly?
Ilie Nastase: I don't know if they passed quickly, they all pass quickly, and 100 years will pass just as fast, and 150 years the same. The important thing is that they passed beautifully, with beautiful memories. And you know there's that Sinatra song... I had some regrets, but I don't want to mention them. I, too, had some regrets, but what good would it do now?
AGERPRES: Do you remember how you received the news that you were world No. 1?
Ilie Nastase: At that time, the rankings were drawn up by newspapers, according to which who took several Grand Slams, individual tournaments, and in that year there was talk that the ATP would make a ranking, but it was not known when it would come out. And that year I think was my best year, I won 12 tournaments, or 14, I don't know how many. Everything on slag court I won that year. And then, as a percentage, I was the best and when the ranking came out, I was number 1.
AGERPRES: Did you have many opponents at that time who wanted to become number 1? Did you feel hunted?
Ilie Nastase: Of course, yes, there were many, there was John Newcombe, who came after me, then Arthur Ashe, Stan Smith, Jimmy Connors, then he came around '74, like, and Bjorn Borg. Of course I was hunted, when you're number 1, everybody wants to beat you, that's clear, with boys, and girls, it's the same. Worse and better than with others, because you inspire them.
AGERPRES: How did the Romanian state reward you at that time for performance?
Ilie Nastase: I was not rewarded, I did not even receive congratulations. I was rewarded with a military pension of 1,435 lei per month. That's the reward I get every month. But know that I didn't expect them to reward me with anything, but if they keep giving to others, and they seriously give these special pensions... I heard someone say I have a special pension... If mine is a special pension, those really special ones how the hell are they, how much will they get?
AGERPRES: How has the ATP circuit transformed since you were world No. 1?
Ilie Nastase: It turned for the better, of course, because more sponsors came. The sponsors started after me, in '73, the serious sponsors started showing up and I want to mention something, until 1973 there were no chairs, you weren't allowed to sit down, we were standing, we put our rackets down, next to the referee's chair, we rinsed our mouths with a little water, or whatever they gave us there, Pepsi-Cola, or whatever it was. I remember in the final against Smith in '72 I played five hours.
AGERPRES: I mean, it was harder, you mean...
Ilie Nastase: It was hard. I learned from some Australians, friends of mine, Roy Emerson, Rod Laver and Ken Rosewall, that the best training is to have matches every day. And how many were we playing? Three, in singles, doubles and mixed doubles. I am only now looking at my record and I have five Grand Slams in doubles and two in singles. Because we played from morning till night. Well, you have to like what you do, because if you don't like it, it's harder.
AGERPRES: There has always been talk about this pleasure of yours to play tennis...
Ilie Nastase: Since I was little I liked to play tennis. I myself set out to become a ball boy, now he tells them 'we'll give you so much to give the balls'. No, I was lucky that I was born at Progresul, there at BNR, and every day when there were matches there I would go, 30 meters from home to the fields, and watch. I watched tennis a lot before I started playing. And my best coach was the wall, because I was playing against the wall. Because if you don't hit it well in the wall, you have to run after it in the back, and I was focused on hitting the wall well to get the ball back.
AGERPRES: Do you regret not playing tennis today, when the winnings are clearly much higher?
Ilie Nastase: No, because if I look ahead to us, those who played before me had much smaller winnings compared to me. So I can't compare myself to today's players, because probably those who will come will win much better than those who are now, and so on. So I'm not thinking about that.
AGERPRES: But did you calculate how much you would have earned if you played today?
Ilie Nastase: Ah, no! That's nonsense, I'm not thinking of anything at all. What is it for? Besides those before me I made money, but besides those from today I did not make money, and it is clear that. Probably 30 or 50 years from now, there will be talk that Djokovic hasn't made any money in comparison.
AGERPRES: You have been world No. 1 for 40 weeks, only Simona Halep, with 64 weeks, has surpassed you so far. When do you think Romania will still have a world No. 1 in tennis?
Ilie Nastase: Simona Halep has never surpassed me, she has surpassed the girls, I am in boys, I have no business with Halep. Whether she stayed 64 weeks and took two Grand Slams, or I took two and five doubles... No, everyone is on their own slice, I don't want to compare myself to anyone. I enjoyed playing tennis, how many I won, there they are, about 58 were not recognized because it was before ATP. If someone wins over 100 tournaments I think it's okay, I have no problem comparing myself. Because there aren't many people who have won 100 tournaments.
AGERPRES: How do you see Romanian men's tennis today, do you think that world number 1 will be born?
Ilie Nastase: I don't believe anything until I see it. It's hard, because tennis is a complete sport and there are many players in the world, and they all play well. It's hard to become world No. 1.
AGERPRES: One last question I have, tell me if you are confident in Simona Halep's chances of return, after the suspension she is about to receive?
Ilie Nastase: I don't know much, what you know, I know too. We have to wait, let's see what decision they make and whether anything can be done with lawyers, I don't know. What if she has a chance of returning? Never mind sir, she was world No. 1 and if World No. 500 beats world No. 1 today, no one minds, you know. I think she has chances to return to the circuit because she is young, I saw that she remained in contact with tennis, she did not go to the mountain somewhere, withdrawn. It's by no means the end of her career.
Former great tennis player Ilie Nastase was born on July 19, 1946, in Bucharest. "Nasty" - as he was nicknamed by the Americans - brought the show to tennis courts around the world, combining impeccable technique and strokes of genius with sometimes shocking jokes.
1972 Davis Cup match; pictured: Ilie Nastase
The kick off of his international career took place at the age of 20, at Roland Garros, in 1966, when he played the doubles final, alongside Ion Tiriac. His first major international success came in 1972 in the United States, where he won the Forrest Hills tournament. Also in 1972, he won together with Ion Tiriac in the doubles' event of the tournament in Rome and in mixed doubles, at Wimbledon, alongside Rosie Casals.
The tennis match within the Davis Cup, 1972 edition, between the Romanian and USA teams (final). Image of the pair Ion Tiriac (r.), Ilie Nastase (l.)
Ilie Nastase's year of glory was 1973, when he won the tournament at Roland Garros, the most important slag court competition, without losing a set. In the same year, he also won the doubles' event at Wimbledon, paired with his friend, the American Jimmy Connors. He also won the tournament in Rome, where he defeated Spain's Manuel Orantes in the final and was named the first leader of the ATP world rankings.
The long of his career, Ilie Nastase won, according to www.atptour.com, 64 ATP tournaments in singles and 45 in doubles. He won the Masters Tournament four times, in 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975; US Open in 1972 and 1975; French Open in 1970 and 1973; Wimbledon in 1973. He played 18 years for Romania's Davis Cup team, winning 109 matches. In 1970, Ilie Nastase entered the ranks of the 20 best tennis players in the world.
Nastase was designated four times Best Romanian Sportsman of the Year (1969, 1972, 1973 and 1974). It was for 40 weeks World #1 (August 23, 1973 - June 2, 1974). He received the Golden Racket in New York in 1973 and is the only Romanian to have his name inscribed in the International Tennis Hall of Fame. In 1990, at Roland Garros, he won the Prize of the Decade. In 2005, Tennis Magazine ranked him 28th on its list of the 40 greatest tennis players of the past 40 years.
