Tennis icon Ilie Nastase has recounted the notorious face-off with John McEnroe at the 1979 U.S. Open , a match that had it all: insults, irate spectators, an overwhelmed umpire, and even police stepping in.
Despite the on-court drama, Nastase and McEnroe buried the hatchet shortly after the game over a meal at McDonald's. Before their second-round duel, Nastase held two Grand Slam titles to McEnroe's none, but the aging Romanian was beyond his prime and resorted to mind games to rattle the young American. "He called me a son of a b---- and I replied, 'Mister son of a b----'," Nastase revealed on the Tennis Legend podcast.
"I was 33-years-old. I wanted to annoy him." He deliberately slowed the game down, prompting McEnroe to call for penalties and ultimately leading to Nastase's disqualification by umpire Frank Hammond.
The decision unleashed chaos among the crowd, who demanded refunds, and police were called to restore order. The match referee intervened, controversially allowing the match to proceed with a new umpire. Nastase added: "McEnroe started yelling, 'No, I don't want to play.
' The umpire firmly told him, 'If you don't play, I'll throw you out.' He calmed down and the match resumed." McEnroe ultimately prevailed in four sets, claiming his first U.
S. Open title and the first of seven Grand Slam victories. According to Nastase, their heated encounter was soon forgotten after a late-night trip to a fast-food joint.
"When we finished, it was 1am," he recalled. "I decide.