Born in Stockholm, Sweden, Björn Borg was already showing exceptional talent and dedication to tennis when he started playing at the age of nine.

Coached by Lennart Bergelin, a Swedish tennis legend of the 1940s and 50s, Borg developed a unique two-handed backhand and quickly rose through the junior ranks.

Borg was just 15 years old when he made his Davis Cup debut and joined the tour, and by 1974, aged 18, he won his first grand slam title at the French Open, the youngest ever male at that particular time. As a teenage prodigy, he burst onto the international stage and announced himself as a force to be reckoned with.

The following year saw Borg retaining the French Open title and reaching the quarter-finals at Wimbledon, where he lost to the eventual winner Arthur Ashe.

Borg, however, never lost another match at Wimbledon until 1981. While Borg excelled in all areas, it was Wimbledon where he truly shone. He won five consecutive Wimbledon titles from 1976 to 1980, establishing an unprecedented record for the Open Era.

By 1976 he became virtually unstoppable as a player on grass courts - somewhat surprising as in the modern era, bassline players struggled. In the words of Ilie Năstase, whom Borg beat in the Wimbledon final, "We're playing tennis. He's playing something else."

Aside from his Wimbledon triumph, Borg secured six French Open titles between 1974 and 1981.

Borg also created history with Sweden in the Davis Cup, where he won his singles matches. It was the first time in the 75-year history of the Davis Cup that a country other than Britain, France, Australia, or the United States had won the cup. This took him to 19 consecutive singles wins, and he extended this record to 33 by the end of his career, never losing a singles game.

In 1980, Borg had already done battle with Jimmy Connors (beating him at Wimbledon but losing in the US Open), and whilst this rivalry slowly burned, his fiercest albeit briefest was about to spark; enter John McEnroe.

Although they had played each other a number of times before, the final at Wimbledon in 1980 became known as one of, if not ‘THE’, most thrilling finals ever played at SW19.

During tense moments, Borg's calm and composed character stood in stark contrast to McEnroe's emotional outbursts, earning him respect and admiration from fans and fellow players alike.

Despite beating McEnroe over 5 sets in a game that swung back and forth, the effect on Borg was significant. In years to come, Borg cited the Wimbledon match as the one where he felt his dominance was starting to fade.

In a shock to the sporting world, at the peak of his career, Borg decided to retire from professional tennis in 1983.

Borg’s last title came at the French Open in 1981, which was his 6th and a record only broken by Rafael Nadal in 2012. Borg then lost to McEnroe in the final at Wimbledon and again to him in the US Open final, where he walked out of the stadium and straight to the airport after the defeat.

Borg only managed a handful of games over the next 14 months and announced his retirement in January 1983 at the age of 26.

Björn Borg's legacy extends far beyond his remarkable tennis career, known forever as the cool and collected Swede. His influence on modern tennis is evident in the continued popularity of topspin shots, especially the two-handed backhand, which he popularised during his heyday.