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We had never seen a player like this.

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This fresh, young guy,

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and everybody was
talking about Ilie Năstase.

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I just... I was born like that.

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I cannot help it, I'm trying,
sometimes, but it's not me.

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Sometimes people want
more than just tennis.

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When Ilie was on the court,
there was always something happening.

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I think of him as this unfulfilled genius.

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What fascinated me the most

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was how he returned the balls.

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It was almost like a dance.

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{\an8}That was the magic, you know,
he made you play his game.

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His life was very tumultuous in 1972.

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{\an8}It was very, you know,
what's gonna happen next?

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You couldn't take your eyes
off the guy on the tennis court!

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The Wimbledon final, the US Open,
the great David Cup final in Bucharest,

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1972 was the key year for Năstase.

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Watching him was
like going to the theater.

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And I always felt Ilie...

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...wanted to be loved
by everyone, and we did love him.

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{\an8}I think Năstase is one of
the great geniuses of our sport,

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one of the first stars of our sport.

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Ilie and Jimmy,
they kind of made tennis cool.

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{\an8}And we were a couple of outlaws.

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{\an8}We were. And we liked it!

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And at the time,
the tennis rules weren't as strict,

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so he could get away with a lot more
than anybody could today.

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But that's how it was.

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I think the reason he has millions of fans
all over the world is that personality.

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{\an8}It's not that he prepared to do stuff,
it just came naturally.

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{\an8}He'd say anything that popped
out of his mouth to linesmen,

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to the opponent, to anybody.

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I think part of the problem was

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tennis was really not ready
for Năstase when he began

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{\an8}some of this histrionics on the court.

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For me, tennis was my life,
since I was 3-4 years old.

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{\an8}I played for pleasure,
but if you add spirit and talent,

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{\an8}start winning and become number one,
it's something, for sure.

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He was extremely shy,

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{\an8}but, on the other hand,
he's always had this charisma.

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{\an8}You just can't learn that.

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You either have it or you don't.

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{\an8}Him coming from sort of a Communist
country, and people didn't know him,

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{\an8}it was like wow, what's
this guy's story? This is crazy!

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He was such a curiosity because...

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{\an8}Early on, he was winning
all these tournaments in Europe,

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{\an8}and we in America
didn't really know who he was.

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And we didn't know
any Iron Curtain athletes.

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We saw now Eastern European
athletes match up to our own athletes.

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But Ilie, to his credit,
you know, he opened up that for us.

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{\an8}The Soviets and others
produced many outstanding athletes.

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But tennis was a little bit
of a stepchild at that time.

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I don't think most Americans
had any idea where Romania was

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and what it was.

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Năstase really was the first big splash
of an Eastern European country.

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In 1969 Nixon came,

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in 1972 Romania joined the World Bank,

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so there was a pattern of trying to break
out from under the Soviet thumb.

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For once, please use
words instead of the ball.

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- Who wants to start?
- Ţiriac! He's older.

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Warm-up compliments, I see.
Let's warm up with some questions.

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Can you please decide
which of you will serve first?

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Ţiriac, he always
warms up faster than me.

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Fine, I'll start, or we'll never finish.

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{\an8}I really understand
the Romanian sense of humor, I do.

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{\an8}There's a different,
different kettle of worms,

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a different type of people,

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and you really either
get it or you don't get it.

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I don't think there was a serious word
ever spoken between Ion and Ilie,

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they just can't help themselves.

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They're brothers from a different mother.

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We know each other well.
We're close friends.

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We share a room at every championship,
each week, month, year...

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Ţiriac says he shares a room with me
more often than with his wife.

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{\an8}When you travelled abroad,
you needed accommodation.

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Wimbledon, for example,
didn't provide a room.

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I said to Ilie: If we sleep
in a park, we can save two pounds.

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Two pounds a day
would buy us four pairs of sneakers,

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that we could sell in Bucharest.

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We were doing business,
not just flying around.

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Then our families could
get by another month.

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He was the brains,
telling me to go all-out or not,

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or do those defensive, high lobs
that landed right on the baseline.

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I think we complement
each other wonderfully.

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We understood each other.

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We each knew where to go,
how and why.

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Mr. Năstase was in another league.

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The rest of us should know our place.

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He won Grand Slam titles
with other players too,

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in doubles and mixed doubles.

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Năstase had been winning a lot,

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{\an8}and the computer ranking,
the first one that came out,

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{\an8}had him No. 1 in the world,
so no one can take that away from him.

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the first ATP-ranking world No. 1.

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We were watching every Monday
morning what our ranking was,

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and he was first.

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He was physically very fit,
very fast, could jump well.

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could slide well on the clay,

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but his main strength
was his feel for the ball.

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When people pay expensive tickets,

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they want to be mesmerized
by the action on the court.

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Ilie gave them that.

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- Mr. Ilie Năstase?
- Yes.

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Excuse me, may I...

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- How do you know me?
- How could I not?

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- You know the lady?
- I did gymnastics.

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Of course, Mrs. Comăneci!

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- The boy knows his stuff!
- May I?

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Sure.
You come over too!

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Look at the kid!

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They opened up tennis,
they showed it to the world.

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{\an8}In many ways, they made
the journey easier for us,

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the players of today.

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There is character,
and there is charisma.

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Ilie Năstase, smolderingly handsome,

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and Ion Ţiriac,
rugged as some Ruthenian bandit.

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But it's Năstase
who sets the hearts aflutter.

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So Wimbledon's underway!

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For your first match,
this is probably where you'll start.

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{\an8}Very interesting, playing on
these outside courts as a youngster.

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{\an8}A lot of older people
never make the inside court.

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But if you're young and ambitious, this
is where you'll play your first matches.

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And you'll look way back
up there and see the scoreboard.

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The things that are going on
inside that center court...

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You'll probably just be a spectator,
watching what's going on.

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It was Romanian Ilie Năstase playing
Stan Smith in the Wimbledon finals.

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It was a big thing.

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And for me to be there, sitting,
watching Ilie play...

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{\an8}I'll never forget that, because
that was starting, for me, to...

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{\an8}I was dreaming, maybe one day
I'm gonna be on that center court.

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Maybe not in a final, but...

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I want to be there.

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This is the biggest thing you can do.

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So I was sitting, enjoying,
and of course I was rooting for Ilie.

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You know, Nasty was great
on every surface, particularly on clay,

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but he became
a very good grass court player,

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{\an8}his serve was more effective on grass
and he could move really well,

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{\an8}so he became a very good
grass court player.

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I was clueless.

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How do you slide?
The court wouldn't let me slide.

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I was used to clay,
which lets you skid around.

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On grass, you hop around.

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It threatens to be one Sabbath day
which isn't too holy.

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It's almost where we came in.

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If Năstase were a violinist,

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you'd feel sure he'd take
the name of Stradivarius in vain.

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00:13:00,080 --> 00:13:02,519
But his choice
of serving racket now is vital!

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00:13:13,039 --> 00:13:15,200
Dan, if I can tell you what's happening...

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Năstase realizes he's got too tight
a racket for these heavy conditions.

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Advantage Smith!

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For the second successive year,

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Wimbledon is to be graced
with a 5-set final of Olympian scale.

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Advantage Smith!

156
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So, for the fourth time,
Smith has championship point.

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It was the last shot of Wimbledon '72,

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and Stanley Smith is informally crowned
the new champion.

159
00:14:40,960 --> 00:14:44,279
But Ilie Năstase will not be
a forgotten finalist.

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He brought to Wimbledon
an arduous temperament

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and revealed a talent
many thought beyond him.

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He was always exciting.

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He missed that shot and I didn't really
realise, for a second, that it was over,

164
00:14:59,919 --> 00:15:03,200
then I threw my racket about
40 feet in the air, jumped over the net.

165
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He was disappointed, obviously.

166
00:15:04,799 --> 00:15:07,919
So people would ask me,
was it difficult to play against him?

167
00:15:07,919 --> 00:15:10,600
Because Nasty was
controversial a lot of times.

168
00:15:10,600 --> 00:15:15,320
But in that match he wasn't, he was just
complaining about his racket strength.

169
00:15:15,320 --> 00:15:16,799
{\an8}And it just didn't work out for him,

170
00:15:16,799 --> 00:15:21,879
{\an8}but I think it was not just lack
of preparedness, but nerves, I think he...

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He didn't handle the pressure well,
and when it got close near the end,

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he didn't quite have
the nerve to pull it off.

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00:16:16,759 --> 00:16:18,279
Năstase, will you come here, please?

174
00:16:23,360 --> 00:16:24,600
First of all...

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Don't call me Năstase!

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00:16:27,200 --> 00:16:28,840
- You call me Mr. Năstase!
- Mr. Năstase!

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00:16:28,840 --> 00:16:30,200
That's better! Yes!

178
00:16:30,200 --> 00:16:31,360
- Mister Năstase.
- Yes, Sir!

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00:16:31,360 --> 00:16:33,559
I'm reporting you for delaying.

180
00:16:33,559 --> 00:16:36,159
I'm reporting you to the referee,
you call me Năstase.

181
00:16:36,159 --> 00:16:37,399
Call me Mister!

182
00:16:37,399 --> 00:16:39,840
Let's play nice, I tell the guy.

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00:16:39,840 --> 00:16:43,159
You don't want trouble from me,
you know I'm crazy.

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From now on,
I'm Mr. Năstase to you.

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00:16:46,320 --> 00:16:49,720
So the match starts.
Borg on the serve.

186
00:16:50,240 --> 00:16:52,440
Love-15, Mr. Năstase!

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00:16:52,440 --> 00:16:56,399
Let's not overdo it,
only call me Mr. for the games!

188
00:17:23,920 --> 00:17:27,519
The Năstase phenomenon
did not begin with Ilie.

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{\an8}It began, though at a much smaller scale,

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00:17:32,799 --> 00:17:35,880
with Costică Năstase, his older brother.

191
00:17:36,359 --> 00:17:39,279
Costică Năstase,
he beat him all the time,

192
00:17:41,039 --> 00:17:42,359
but it helped him a lot,

193
00:17:42,359 --> 00:17:46,240
{\an8}having Costică and myself in the team.

194
00:17:47,680 --> 00:17:52,440
Costică... what a hard worker,
what an amazing character.

195
00:17:52,839 --> 00:17:57,480
I always said, if he had had
10% of Ilie's talent,

196
00:17:58,000 --> 00:17:59,799
he'd have been a world champion.

197
00:17:59,799 --> 00:18:02,799
Costică was 13 years older than me.

198
00:18:03,200 --> 00:18:07,000
The house was full of tennis rackets
and dirty tennis shoes.

199
00:18:07,000 --> 00:18:08,480
I had the equipment.

200
00:18:08,480 --> 00:18:10,480
It made you want to play.

201
00:18:11,000 --> 00:18:13,839
I was living in the tennis club.

202
00:18:13,839 --> 00:18:16,559
My house was
just inside of the tennis club.

203
00:18:17,039 --> 00:18:20,000
And every time I was going home
from school,

204
00:18:21,319 --> 00:18:24,960
or going to school,
I would pass the tennis club on my way.

205
00:18:26,319 --> 00:18:29,559
Our house was between a tennis court
and a football stadium.

206
00:18:29,559 --> 00:18:34,680
When I was five, I got out of the house
with a football and a tennis racket.

207
00:18:34,680 --> 00:18:38,640
I walked around the stadium
kicking the ball and swinging the racket.

208
00:18:38,640 --> 00:18:42,839
They were both in my head,
I didn't know which one to choose.

209
00:18:43,160 --> 00:18:47,000
Like everybody in Europe, I was
interested in soccer more than tennis.

210
00:18:47,519 --> 00:18:50,119
Why didn't you become
a football player, then?

211
00:18:50,880 --> 00:18:53,599
Well, when I was 13 or 14,

212
00:18:53,599 --> 00:18:57,839
I won my first tournament in tennis
and they gave me a brand new racket,

213
00:18:58,319 --> 00:19:01,359
which was something
unbelievable for me at that age.

214
00:19:01,759 --> 00:19:03,839
Just because of that racket, maybe,

215
00:19:03,839 --> 00:19:06,839
I switched completely
from soccer to tennis.

216
00:19:07,759 --> 00:19:10,799
The first time he put on ice skates,
I couldn't keep up.

217
00:19:11,640 --> 00:19:14,400
I wanted to teach him
skiing in Poiana Braşov,

218
00:19:14,759 --> 00:19:16,880
and he skied down perfectly,

219
00:19:16,880 --> 00:19:20,920
except he ran into the fence
because I hadn't taught him to stop.

220
00:19:23,599 --> 00:19:27,640
{\an8}Definitely, because Ţiriac
was quite a few years older

221
00:19:27,960 --> 00:19:30,319
{\an8}and he also came from another sport,

222
00:19:31,119 --> 00:19:33,680
a very good ice hockey player,
a very good sportsman.

223
00:19:34,440 --> 00:19:39,160
He knew all the tricks of the game, and
I think definitely Ilie learned from him.

224
00:19:39,839 --> 00:19:44,319
{\an8}Năstase grew
by my side, I would say...

225
00:19:45,079 --> 00:19:48,960
I saw him evolving in everything,
not only in tennis.

226
00:19:49,839 --> 00:19:52,559
It was very hard for me to get here,

227
00:19:53,079 --> 00:19:56,200
it took at least 10-12 years.

228
00:19:57,559 --> 00:20:01,559
Others told me that
I met Ilie back in 1959,

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00:20:03,000 --> 00:20:04,599
apparently he was my ball boy.

230
00:20:06,200 --> 00:20:07,680
I don't remember that.

231
00:20:08,039 --> 00:20:12,359
I do remember seeing him
in Bucharest in the '60s,

232
00:20:12,359 --> 00:20:13,640
but he wasn't playing tennis.

233
00:20:13,640 --> 00:20:18,079
He was playing football with
some boys and kept hiding the ball.

234
00:20:18,079 --> 00:20:22,799
He must have weighed
30 kilos or something.

235
00:20:24,079 --> 00:20:26,759
At first, they only let me
bounce the ball against the wall.

236
00:20:27,079 --> 00:20:33,079
It was actually great training,
my racket was a piece of fence

237
00:20:33,599 --> 00:20:36,319
cut in the shape of a paddle-bat.

238
00:20:37,079 --> 00:20:40,240
If you did it wrong,
the ball didn't bounce back.

239
00:20:40,640 --> 00:20:42,039
You had to chase it.

240
00:20:42,039 --> 00:20:47,319
You had to really focus so you
could hit it a second and third time.

241
00:20:48,079 --> 00:20:50,839
That wall was good training for me.

242
00:20:52,000 --> 00:20:55,759
Besides, behind that wall
was the chocolate factory!

243
00:20:55,759 --> 00:20:58,920
Sometimes, the workers
would throw me some.

244
00:21:00,319 --> 00:21:03,720
I started to see more and more of Ilie.

245
00:21:03,720 --> 00:21:07,400
The Federation already
had their eye on him.

246
00:21:07,720 --> 00:21:09,599
So I sort of took him along.

247
00:21:10,039 --> 00:21:14,960
I was a great sportsman back then,
17 tournaments under my belt,

248
00:21:15,279 --> 00:21:17,640
in a position to negotiate my pay.

249
00:21:17,640 --> 00:21:24,000
I could say if you won't give me
a few lei extra for Ilie,

250
00:21:24,440 --> 00:21:25,680
I'm not coming.

251
00:21:25,680 --> 00:21:27,920
Ţiriac would tell the organizers:

252
00:21:28,519 --> 00:21:30,440
If I come to your tournament,

253
00:21:30,440 --> 00:21:33,079
Năstase and Mărmureanu
are coming too.

254
00:21:33,559 --> 00:21:34,799
He was the brains.

255
00:21:35,200 --> 00:21:40,119
He always got us contracts
with racket and shoe brands,

256
00:21:40,119 --> 00:21:42,759
with equipment providers.

257
00:21:42,759 --> 00:21:45,119
We were satisfied,
we got our equipment.

258
00:21:45,759 --> 00:21:49,240
Lately, your name
is connected with that of Ţiriac.

259
00:21:49,240 --> 00:21:53,319
Could you describe
your fellow sportsman?

260
00:21:56,359 --> 00:21:58,559
I've been playing with Ion for...

261
00:21:59,480 --> 00:22:01,039
...about eight years,

262
00:22:01,039 --> 00:22:05,880
and I can say I owe him my first
participation in a great tournament.

263
00:22:06,319 --> 00:22:11,720
He was famous,
I was just starting to become famous.

264
00:22:13,799 --> 00:22:17,839
When we started to pair for doubles,
it worked very well from the start.

265
00:22:18,240 --> 00:22:20,720
He was a wild child.

266
00:22:21,759 --> 00:22:25,960
{\an8}In 1966, we first played
in the Davis Cup against France.

267
00:22:26,359 --> 00:22:29,039
{\an8}We lost the doubles in five sets.

268
00:22:30,200 --> 00:22:33,240
{\an8}We lost it because of Năstase.

269
00:22:34,079 --> 00:22:36,599
{\an8}I still believe this, he may not agree.

270
00:22:36,960 --> 00:22:40,519
{\an8}It was the event that cemented
our doubles team.

271
00:22:41,039 --> 00:22:44,039
{\an8}We match each other's
qualities and faults.

272
00:22:46,440 --> 00:22:49,440
We played the finals here.
In 1966.

273
00:22:49,440 --> 00:22:51,720
Two Americans beat us in the finals.

274
00:22:52,039 --> 00:22:54,200
It was my first French Open.

275
00:22:54,759 --> 00:22:56,880
That is, my first time at the French Open.

276
00:22:57,400 --> 00:23:01,400
This afternoon at Roland-Garros, in
sunny weather, before 2.000 spectators,

277
00:23:01,400 --> 00:23:04,160
young Năstase proved
to be the best of the four,

278
00:23:04,160 --> 00:23:06,200
while his partner Ţiriac was the weakest.

279
00:23:06,200 --> 00:23:10,960
Ţiriac made constant disparaging
remarks about his young partner,

280
00:23:10,960 --> 00:23:12,799
who, however, played far better.

281
00:23:14,039 --> 00:23:18,079
He played a lot with Ion.
They made an amazing team.

282
00:23:18,440 --> 00:23:21,880
They were winning a lot.
They were very, very, very strong.

283
00:23:21,880 --> 00:23:26,559
Ion's game was very serious,
intelligent and all that,

284
00:23:26,559 --> 00:23:31,079
{\an8}Năstase flitted around, intercepted,
creative all the time.

285
00:23:31,960 --> 00:23:34,400
He couldn't do
anything stupid, because Ion...

286
00:23:36,319 --> 00:23:37,680
Would twist his neck.

287
00:23:40,359 --> 00:23:42,839
There were a couple of things
that made him stand out.

288
00:23:42,839 --> 00:23:44,319
You could almost call him a genius.

289
00:23:44,319 --> 00:23:47,720
{\an8}He was hitting shots that
nobody else could play at that time.

290
00:23:49,359 --> 00:23:52,400
Santana had introduced
the topspin lob off the back end,

291
00:23:52,400 --> 00:23:53,680
he took it to another level.

292
00:23:54,559 --> 00:23:57,119
Tennis was in a very, very...

293
00:23:57,799 --> 00:24:00,079
strong state of transition,

294
00:24:00,480 --> 00:24:03,880
at the time that Năstase
was on the scene.

295
00:24:04,880 --> 00:24:07,720
You have to keep in mind that in 1968

296
00:24:08,160 --> 00:24:13,160
tennis went from essentially
an amateur sport to the Open era.

297
00:24:13,160 --> 00:24:15,680
uniting amateurs and professionals.

298
00:24:15,680 --> 00:24:19,480
And that brought a whole new
element into the game, besides money.

299
00:24:19,960 --> 00:24:23,480
{\an8}It also brought prominence
to players who'd have been away.

300
00:24:23,799 --> 00:24:27,680
It also changed the emphasis
in terms of what was important,

301
00:24:27,680 --> 00:24:32,039
because now the game was open,
it was now a sort of free-for-all.

302
00:24:32,960 --> 00:24:36,319
Tennis was sort of a sport for the elite,

303
00:24:36,319 --> 00:24:39,720
{\an8}and when Năstase came along,
it became...

304
00:24:40,920 --> 00:24:43,279
{\an8}more exciting for the common man.

305
00:24:43,279 --> 00:24:47,160
It created emotion that
the average man could identify with.

306
00:24:52,960 --> 00:24:57,119
I find the tennis back then
more beautiful than the one now.

307
00:24:57,440 --> 00:25:00,000
The ball wasn't so fast,

308
00:25:00,000 --> 00:25:03,960
it gave you time
to see the elegance of it.

309
00:25:04,599 --> 00:25:06,720
{\an8}Năstase was highly artistic,

310
00:25:07,279 --> 00:25:09,480
{\an8}as well as highly aesthetical.

311
00:25:09,839 --> 00:25:14,359
Before him, all the players
were very humble and serious,

312
00:25:14,720 --> 00:25:18,559
{\an8}and Ilie combined all of that:
the beautiful game, the good looks,

313
00:25:18,880 --> 00:25:21,680
the interaction with the crowd,
he could speak Italian, so...

314
00:25:22,200 --> 00:25:26,319
All of that made him
an overnight rockstar, I think.

315
00:25:26,319 --> 00:25:31,200
{\an8}But I don't remember if there was
one player that was having as much fun

316
00:25:31,200 --> 00:25:33,640
and being as disruptive as Ilie was.

317
00:25:33,640 --> 00:25:36,720
I don't know where he got it,
I think it's a Romanian thing.

318
00:25:37,039 --> 00:25:39,359
{\an8}There was another guy
before him, Pancho Gonzáles,

319
00:25:40,240 --> 00:25:45,240
Pancho Gonzáles was amazing, I think
he, in some ways, was the first superstar

320
00:25:45,240 --> 00:25:47,519
before court tennis the way we know it,

321
00:25:47,519 --> 00:25:50,680
but Năstase definitely
was the superstar of our sport.

322
00:25:50,680 --> 00:25:53,119
He transcended our sport.

323
00:25:53,599 --> 00:25:56,640
People knew about him
whether they were into tennis or not.

324
00:26:00,759 --> 00:26:04,480
Insolent, elegant, angry,
whimsical, bon vivant,

325
00:26:04,880 --> 00:26:07,960
Ilie Năstase is more than
just a great tennis player.

326
00:26:08,319 --> 00:26:11,559
His personality makes him
the most courted champion

327
00:26:11,559 --> 00:26:13,240
of modern-day tennis.

328
00:26:13,240 --> 00:26:17,160
The success of a federation tournament
is built on his name.

329
00:26:17,160 --> 00:26:20,079
The năstase is the only tennis currency

330
00:26:20,079 --> 00:26:23,559
on par with the US dollar
of professional tennis.

331
00:26:25,559 --> 00:26:28,440
A daredevil on the court
and in real life,

332
00:26:28,799 --> 00:26:31,400
he is loved by some,
hated by others.

333
00:26:31,920 --> 00:26:35,480
He is certainly far removed
from the distinguished gentlemen

334
00:26:35,480 --> 00:26:37,720
who in 1920, at Wimbledon,

335
00:26:37,720 --> 00:26:42,079
between backhand shots,
bowed to the ladies in attendance.

336
00:26:42,960 --> 00:26:46,279
But Năstase is also not
akin to Pancho Gonzáles,

337
00:26:46,759 --> 00:26:50,480
the sportive expression
of the American consumerist society.

338
00:26:51,519 --> 00:26:53,200
He is something new from the East,

339
00:26:53,799 --> 00:26:56,200
a rebellious bohemian armed with a racket

340
00:26:56,200 --> 00:27:00,200
with which, when offended,
he deals vicious blows.

341
00:27:04,400 --> 00:27:08,359
{\an8}He could serve that way,
and the ball goes the other way.

342
00:27:08,759 --> 00:27:13,039
I've seen him do that, he goes backwards
and he serves and flicks his wrist back,

343
00:27:13,519 --> 00:27:16,359
it's almost impossible,
and the ball goes in.

344
00:27:16,680 --> 00:27:20,640
He has a fantastic wrist
and great control over the ball.

345
00:27:21,200 --> 00:27:24,680
I think he has more control over the ball
than himself, that was his problem.

346
00:27:25,039 --> 00:27:29,319
Because he was in fact
ahead of the game as to where it was,

347
00:27:29,319 --> 00:27:33,559
many people mistook
what his behaviour was on the court

348
00:27:33,559 --> 00:27:38,519
and these officials, the linesmen,
they were not prepared to accept

349
00:27:38,519 --> 00:27:41,119
what Năstase was bringing to the table,

350
00:27:41,119 --> 00:27:44,279
I don't think anybody
in the officialdom were prepared

351
00:27:44,279 --> 00:27:46,799
to help them understand
these players

352
00:27:46,799 --> 00:27:48,720
and what that behaviour was.

353
00:27:50,000 --> 00:27:54,279
Năstase, play on, please,
otherwise you are disqualified!

354
00:28:33,599 --> 00:28:37,720
People would say I never come to tennis,
I don't even know what it is,

355
00:28:37,720 --> 00:28:40,559
and yet, because of Năstase,
I'm coming out to watch.

356
00:28:49,000 --> 00:28:52,920
His match with Hans-Jürgen Pohmann
was the talk of the tennis world,

357
00:28:52,920 --> 00:28:54,799
during the first week at Forest Hills.

358
00:28:55,400 --> 00:28:58,160
Most considered it
the worst display of his career.

359
00:28:58,160 --> 00:29:00,799
{\an8}On the court, they say, he would losing it

360
00:29:00,799 --> 00:29:03,200
{\an8}and there were times
that it would get almost...

361
00:29:03,759 --> 00:29:08,079
Monster is a strong word, but there was
a very dark side that would come out.

362
00:29:09,519 --> 00:29:12,039
This is the first set.
The 6th point, the tie-breaker.

363
00:29:12,359 --> 00:29:13,960
This is when it all began.

364
00:29:14,279 --> 00:29:16,920
A shot by Năstase appeared
to have hit on the sideline.

365
00:29:16,920 --> 00:29:18,079
It was called out.

366
00:29:18,519 --> 00:29:21,279
It was on the line, the ball!

367
00:29:23,359 --> 00:29:25,680
Năstase's anger continues...

368
00:29:25,680 --> 00:29:29,079
Here comes a backhand
down the line, called good.

369
00:29:29,079 --> 00:29:31,200
This is by far
the longest delay of the match.

370
00:29:31,200 --> 00:29:34,240
The linesman
comes out to take a look.

371
00:29:34,799 --> 00:29:38,680
Now watch Năstase shout at him,
he uses bad language.

372
00:29:40,400 --> 00:29:42,160
More shouting, haranguing.

373
00:29:42,599 --> 00:29:45,759
He finally reaches over
and touches his arm, right there.

374
00:29:45,759 --> 00:29:48,079
Linesman says Hold it, the ball is good.

375
00:29:48,079 --> 00:29:50,319
He was wrong for two fucking balls!

376
00:29:55,880 --> 00:29:58,559
Pohmann's complaining about the delay,

377
00:29:59,160 --> 00:30:02,400
and now Ilie is complaining
about the linesman's calls.

378
00:30:07,480 --> 00:30:09,920
You're always on the edge
of your seat with Năstase.

379
00:30:10,920 --> 00:30:13,599
You're not sitting back and relaxing.

380
00:30:14,240 --> 00:30:16,559
He really brought the crowd in.

381
00:30:16,920 --> 00:30:20,039
Now Pohmann serving.
This is the first time he fell.

382
00:30:23,160 --> 00:30:24,519
He had leg cramps.

383
00:30:24,519 --> 00:30:25,559
Right here!

384
00:30:26,119 --> 00:30:28,759
The umpire thought he had
hurt himself badly,

385
00:30:28,759 --> 00:30:31,960
thought maybe he'd broken his leg,
you'll hear him call for a doctor.

386
00:30:32,880 --> 00:30:36,640
Pohmann refuses the doctor,
momentarily says I'm OK,

387
00:30:36,960 --> 00:30:38,400
wants to walk it off.

388
00:30:40,240 --> 00:30:42,519
Now here's a delay on Pohmann's part.

389
00:30:43,039 --> 00:30:46,359
The rules state you cannot get help
from a doctor for leg cramps.

390
00:30:46,359 --> 00:30:48,880
If you can't continue,
you're supposed to be defaulted.

391
00:30:52,400 --> 00:30:55,599
This is bad, he's saying:
Come on, play, play!

392
00:30:56,240 --> 00:30:58,039
Pohmann's in pain, but refuses to quit.

393
00:31:00,799 --> 00:31:03,400
He's down again!
This is the second time.

394
00:31:06,039 --> 00:31:09,599
{\an8}He definitely had
a way of riling things up.

395
00:31:09,599 --> 00:31:13,720
{\an8}I ballboyed at the Forest Hills
when he was playing,

396
00:31:13,720 --> 00:31:17,240
{\an8}for his match against Pohmann,
which was, like, a crazy match,

397
00:31:17,240 --> 00:31:21,160
and I was like
man, this guy's unbelievable!

398
00:31:21,640 --> 00:31:24,839
Unbelievably crazy!
But he sort of got away with it.

399
00:31:27,240 --> 00:31:31,039
Do you know the rules?
How many times he can stop the match?

400
00:31:31,440 --> 00:31:33,680
Twice he is down, the son of a bitch.

401
00:31:34,400 --> 00:31:36,599
Twice he is down!
Five minutes I waited!

402
00:31:39,960 --> 00:31:41,680
The crowd is angry with Năstase.

403
00:31:42,480 --> 00:31:46,319
Lady with thumbs down, and he
spits orange juice towards the crowd.

404
00:32:10,000 --> 00:32:11,519
Năstase is really upset.

405
00:32:12,480 --> 00:32:15,960
You know, Jack, if I were the umpire,
right now, I'd throw him out.

406
00:32:19,240 --> 00:32:21,880
When this is over,
the umpire and all the linespeople

407
00:32:21,880 --> 00:32:24,319
might go someplace
to have a nice quiet drink.

408
00:32:24,319 --> 00:32:26,880
{\an8}- Wouldn't you?
- I would think it'd be a double.

409
00:32:30,880 --> 00:32:32,519
Here's the winning volley.

410
00:32:32,880 --> 00:32:37,200
Now watch him yell, scream.
Now he spits in Pohmann's direction.

411
00:32:37,920 --> 00:32:40,119
Yells and throws the ball.

412
00:32:41,279 --> 00:32:45,680
Bad language. He wants to shake
the umpire's hand, umpire says no way.

413
00:32:50,160 --> 00:32:52,240
Now he comes back
to harangue Pohmann more.

414
00:32:52,240 --> 00:32:56,119
Your legs, your cramps?!
You were down twice.

415
00:32:56,440 --> 00:32:57,680
More bad language.

416
00:32:58,559 --> 00:33:00,480
Now you'll see him.
Another gesture.

417
00:33:00,480 --> 00:33:04,720
Now the doctor says to Năstase
Calm down, take it easy.

418
00:33:05,319 --> 00:33:07,799
You'll see him push the doctor.
Now watch.

419
00:33:07,799 --> 00:33:09,039
Fuck you too!

420
00:33:09,039 --> 00:33:10,799
Pushes and cusses him as well.

421
00:33:10,799 --> 00:33:13,160
Twice he was down. Twice!

422
00:33:13,839 --> 00:33:15,359
I just was born like that.

423
00:33:15,359 --> 00:33:19,319
I mean I cannot help it.
I'm trying sometimes, but it's not me.

424
00:33:20,920 --> 00:33:23,359
I get sick of trying
something which I don't like.

425
00:33:23,920 --> 00:33:25,200
Do you sleep well?
Do you sleep much?

426
00:33:25,200 --> 00:33:29,319
No, I'm very nervous.
I have to touch things when I...

427
00:33:29,319 --> 00:33:32,960
Even in interviews, or when I eat,
at the table I have to talk to people.

428
00:33:33,880 --> 00:33:36,000
I have so much energy, I have to spend it.

429
00:33:36,799 --> 00:33:38,279
So I'll always be like that.

430
00:33:39,920 --> 00:33:43,599
And sometimes on the court
I'm so emotional

431
00:33:44,039 --> 00:33:47,160
that I have to talk
with people or do things

432
00:33:48,000 --> 00:33:50,480
to get out of this.

433
00:34:15,119 --> 00:34:16,920
Now there are two left.

434
00:34:17,679 --> 00:34:19,039
Ashe and Năstase.

435
00:34:19,480 --> 00:34:22,360
Ashe had had this great run
beating Stan Smith in the quarterfinals.

436
00:34:22,760 --> 00:34:27,119
It looked like he was gonna
get that title, like he had the match won.

437
00:34:27,480 --> 00:34:31,719
{\an8}It was a challenge to try
to put some perspective on it,

438
00:34:32,039 --> 00:34:37,119
{\an8}because many of the things
that occurred were so different in nature

439
00:34:37,440 --> 00:34:42,400
that you had to draw an analysis
as to whether this was creative Năstase

440
00:34:42,880 --> 00:34:47,440
or whether he was doing something
that was so totally off the books

441
00:34:47,800 --> 00:34:50,320
that no one could
understand it at the time.

442
00:34:51,079 --> 00:34:53,519
- 15 - love.
- Correct call?

443
00:34:55,000 --> 00:34:57,559
Năstase asks the umpire:
Correct call?

444
00:34:57,559 --> 00:35:00,840
I can't put my finger on one moment
of Năstase doing something,

445
00:35:00,840 --> 00:35:02,920
but there were a number
of little outbursts.

446
00:35:04,519 --> 00:35:06,039
Now the advantage to Ashe.

447
00:35:08,119 --> 00:35:11,599
Ilie's trying to let us know
the airplanes are coming so close

448
00:35:11,599 --> 00:35:13,320
he can hardly hear himself think.

449
00:35:14,639 --> 00:35:16,360
They have airplanes in Bucharest.

450
00:35:17,960 --> 00:35:21,679
Dominique Grazia, she's a Belgian,
fiancée of Ilie Năstase.

451
00:35:22,159 --> 00:35:25,320
They split the first two sets,
then Ashe won a tie break on the third,

452
00:35:25,320 --> 00:35:28,280
it looked like that was going
to be the pendulum-swinging moment

453
00:35:28,280 --> 00:35:32,199
and he went up 3-1 in the fourth set
with a break point for 4-1,

454
00:35:32,199 --> 00:35:34,480
almost two breaks, didn't get it,

455
00:35:34,480 --> 00:35:35,800
still went ahead 4-2,

456
00:35:36,400 --> 00:35:39,320
then Năstase came back
and won that set, beat him in 5.

457
00:35:41,159 --> 00:35:43,880
{\an8}He has the match right here on his racket.

458
00:35:44,320 --> 00:35:46,800
The Open championship at match point.

459
00:35:50,760 --> 00:35:53,199
And he'll have to suffer
through a second serve.

460
00:35:59,440 --> 00:36:01,920
Hell of a shot, Ilie Năstase!

461
00:36:03,000 --> 00:36:05,000
Off of a net-caught ball!

462
00:36:06,679 --> 00:36:08,079
He is the champion!

463
00:36:09,480 --> 00:36:12,159
First major championship
title for Năstase.

464
00:36:12,559 --> 00:36:15,159
{\an8}The US Open 1972 is his!

465
00:36:16,519 --> 00:36:21,000
{\an8}Dominique says: We'll take the 25.000$
in 1$ bills and spread them around.

466
00:36:21,000 --> 00:36:25,079
{\an8}For Ilie, I'm sure, is really overcome
with what he's just accomplished.

467
00:36:25,880 --> 00:36:29,039
Dominique Grazia can't quite believe it.

468
00:36:38,360 --> 00:36:42,639
Yesterday I went back and
watched Năstase beat Gorman.

469
00:36:43,880 --> 00:36:45,440
Mister Năstase. Sorry.

470
00:36:46,960 --> 00:36:50,280
When the match went over,
Ashe said in the presentation ceremony

471
00:36:50,280 --> 00:36:51,800
Ilie is a great player,

472
00:36:51,800 --> 00:36:56,840
but someday he'll be even better
when he learns to behave better.

473
00:36:56,840 --> 00:37:00,760
Năstase, typically of him,
waved his winner's cheque at Ashe,

474
00:37:00,760 --> 00:37:03,599
as Arthur said that,
just to sort of poke fun at him.

475
00:37:06,960 --> 00:37:11,320
He had the body of a man,
he had something of the psyche of a man,

476
00:37:11,320 --> 00:37:16,559
and yet often his conduct
seemed to be like that of a...

477
00:37:16,960 --> 00:37:20,119
I don't mean it meanly,
but kind of a spoiled brat.

478
00:37:21,159 --> 00:37:25,480
He was the master of play.
He won Monte Carlo, he won Rome.

479
00:37:25,480 --> 00:37:29,320
He won the US Open, he won the French.
At that time, he was the best.

480
00:37:45,280 --> 00:37:49,679
Năstase wins the French Open,
taking home the first prize of 15,000$.

481
00:37:55,760 --> 00:37:59,199
This is the second major
championship title for Ilie.

482
00:38:01,119 --> 00:38:02,920
Will Wimbledon be next?

483
00:38:03,559 --> 00:38:08,960
Of course he was No. 1 in the world.
In 1973 and 1972 he won everything.

484
00:38:11,719 --> 00:38:15,239
We grew up watching him on TV.
I learned how to count, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,

485
00:38:15,239 --> 00:38:18,639
I learned that Ilie Năstase
won this and this.

486
00:38:18,639 --> 00:38:21,000
He won the Masters many, many times.

487
00:38:23,000 --> 00:38:26,960
I believe that he did what he enjoyed,

488
00:38:26,960 --> 00:38:31,480
and managed to be unique,
an icon through how he lived.

489
00:38:33,000 --> 00:38:36,119
Being number one,
all the while being naughty

490
00:38:36,119 --> 00:38:38,159
and enjoying life...

491
00:38:39,079 --> 00:38:40,840
is there anything
more beautiful than that?

492
00:38:49,440 --> 00:38:52,000
{\an8}His hand-to-eye coordination
was unbelievable.

493
00:38:52,599 --> 00:38:55,679
He was a great athlete...
run, speed, everything.

494
00:38:55,679 --> 00:39:00,440
I mean, playing tennis was easier
for him than tying your shoelaces.

495
00:39:18,920 --> 00:39:22,239
...some wonderful plays by Năstase
and a remarkable performance,

496
00:39:22,239 --> 00:39:25,599
to win the Masters title
four times in five years.

497
00:39:26,000 --> 00:39:28,559
He is the first player
to achieve this incredible feat.

498
00:40:05,800 --> 00:40:08,360
In our time, my time, Ilie's time,

499
00:40:08,360 --> 00:40:11,559
{\an8}I think you had more personalities.

500
00:40:12,760 --> 00:40:15,840
You could relate
to different plays on the court,

501
00:40:16,719 --> 00:40:19,360
like myself, Ilie, Vilas...

502
00:40:19,679 --> 00:40:22,360
in different ways compared to today.

503
00:40:31,000 --> 00:40:32,639
We meant the human sides.

504
00:40:32,639 --> 00:40:36,039
They were much more human,
today they are much more machine.

505
00:40:36,400 --> 00:40:39,599
It's difficult also
for the journalist to build

506
00:40:40,079 --> 00:40:43,800
{\an8}a friendship or
a communication with the players.

507
00:40:44,159 --> 00:40:47,639
I saw him playing an unforgettable match
against Arthur Ashe.

508
00:40:47,639 --> 00:40:51,920
That was the only match in history
where both players lost.

509
00:40:52,320 --> 00:40:55,320
Because that never happened
before and afterwards.

510
00:41:07,320 --> 00:41:10,599
At the time,
I was a referee for the event.

511
00:41:11,119 --> 00:41:13,400
{\an8}And somebody came to me and said:

512
00:41:13,760 --> 00:41:17,360
{\an8}Please go down to the locker rooms,
something is happening there.

513
00:41:18,280 --> 00:41:20,400
Ilie is trying to irritate Arthur.

514
00:41:21,000 --> 00:41:24,199
I went down and I saw...

515
00:41:25,119 --> 00:41:28,280
that Arthur Ashe
was trying to comb his hair,

516
00:41:28,679 --> 00:41:32,440
and suddenly Ilie came from his side:

517
00:41:32,800 --> 00:41:37,280
"Negroni, you don't have
such nice hair as I have here!

518
00:41:37,719 --> 00:41:39,199
"So get off here!"

519
00:41:41,079 --> 00:41:42,960
Nasty, who's making
a movie of you now?

520
00:41:43,280 --> 00:41:46,400
No, they don't make a movie,
it's just for a television here.

521
00:41:49,760 --> 00:41:53,599
My friend, Negroni is my best friend
in the whole America!

522
00:41:53,599 --> 00:41:55,920
Nobody else talks to you, that's why.

523
00:41:57,400 --> 00:42:01,519
{\an8}Billie Jean King and Arthur Ashe, the two
most important tennis players of all time.

524
00:42:02,000 --> 00:42:04,519
{\an8}Because they went beyond tennis.

525
00:42:05,199 --> 00:42:09,679
There you go. And then you have, maybe,
a few crazy people along the way.

526
00:42:09,679 --> 00:42:13,840
Ilie would be someone
who's very passionate, very soulful,

527
00:42:14,159 --> 00:42:16,400
and when you're passionate, things...

528
00:42:16,920 --> 00:42:19,360
And you can't help it.

529
00:42:36,360 --> 00:42:39,880
He is also making mistakes.
Why don't you give him a warning too?

530
00:42:41,360 --> 00:42:43,719
If you give me a warning
give one to him too.

531
00:42:45,119 --> 00:42:47,840
{\an8}You always knew that something
was gonna happen.

532
00:42:48,199 --> 00:42:51,440
{\an8}He's gonna blow up,
or something to try to make you mad.

533
00:42:51,840 --> 00:42:57,039
And I had no problem with that, I only
had a problem if the referee didn't...

534
00:42:59,000 --> 00:43:02,960
control the match,
sometimes the umpires at that time,

535
00:43:03,280 --> 00:43:06,119
they were a bit afraid of some players.

536
00:43:06,119 --> 00:43:08,840
They were a little bit
afraid of Ilie as well, I think.

537
00:43:10,559 --> 00:43:11,480
15 - 40.

538
00:43:16,480 --> 00:43:17,719
First service.

539
00:43:19,760 --> 00:43:21,599
- First service.
- Why?

540
00:43:22,320 --> 00:43:23,719
- Why?
- Let.

541
00:43:23,719 --> 00:43:24,719
When?

542
00:43:27,840 --> 00:43:28,840
Let?

543
00:43:29,360 --> 00:43:32,119
- Arthur wasn't ready.
- Not my fault, my friend.

544
00:43:32,119 --> 00:43:37,000
{\an8}Ashe was leading 4-0-1 in the final set,
with 15-40 lead and Năstase serving,

545
00:43:37,000 --> 00:43:38,639
to make it 5-1.

546
00:43:38,639 --> 00:43:41,280
Every time Năstase started to serve,

547
00:43:42,440 --> 00:43:46,440
he kept looking up and saying:
Are you ready, Mr. Ashe? Are you ready?

548
00:43:48,639 --> 00:43:51,280
Give him a warning
if he's not ready all the time.

549
00:43:54,119 --> 00:43:55,760
15-40.
First service.

550
00:43:56,119 --> 00:43:57,960
- No. 30-40.
- Come on!

551
00:43:58,480 --> 00:43:59,519
Shut up.

552
00:44:06,360 --> 00:44:08,440
It's not my fault
he's not ready all the time.

553
00:44:09,920 --> 00:44:11,519
Play now.

554
00:44:11,519 --> 00:44:14,639
I'll play, but it's not my fault
he's not ready all the time.

555
00:44:25,880 --> 00:44:27,559
And I said "Uh-oh."

556
00:44:28,000 --> 00:44:32,000
At that time, the rules were not so clear
as they are now.

557
00:44:32,639 --> 00:44:37,719
All the rules were in 10 little chapters,

558
00:44:38,239 --> 00:44:39,920
on three pages.

559
00:44:51,159 --> 00:44:52,599
Ready, Mr. Ashe?

560
00:44:58,679 --> 00:44:59,920
- One?
- Play, play!

561
00:45:00,880 --> 00:45:01,840
Yes, Ma'am.

562
00:45:04,239 --> 00:45:06,360
Please be quiet.
Thank you.

563
00:45:07,559 --> 00:45:08,840
15-40.
First service.

564
00:45:09,320 --> 00:45:10,360
Yes, Ma'am.

565
00:45:22,480 --> 00:45:24,800
Năstase,
you are already warned.

566
00:45:26,400 --> 00:45:27,320
Play now.

567
00:45:29,159 --> 00:45:31,719
And this happens three or four times.

568
00:45:32,440 --> 00:45:37,280
And, unfortunately, the chair umpire
didn't interfere immediately.

569
00:45:37,800 --> 00:45:40,800
Only after the third time, he said:

570
00:45:40,800 --> 00:45:44,559
"Please go on, Mr. Năstase,
play has to be continuous."

571
00:45:58,000 --> 00:45:59,000
Go, play!

572
00:46:01,119 --> 00:46:03,199
Yes, Sir!
Unbelievable!

573
00:46:03,880 --> 00:46:05,880
Umpire, he's talking to me!

574
00:46:07,599 --> 00:46:10,960
{\an8}Something in me snapped,
I just couldn't take it anymore.

575
00:46:11,679 --> 00:46:15,760
I waited and waited,
and he was warned two times on the court,

576
00:46:16,519 --> 00:46:19,599
then, finally,
I said I'm not taking it anymore.

577
00:46:21,000 --> 00:46:22,159
That's that, I'm leaving.

578
00:46:32,480 --> 00:46:34,519
The referee immediately defaulted Ashe,

579
00:46:35,119 --> 00:46:37,960
and Ashe said
"I'm out of here before you default me."

580
00:46:37,960 --> 00:46:40,000
"It's not a real default, I quit",
and he walked off.

581
00:46:40,400 --> 00:46:41,599
The referee defaulted him,

582
00:46:41,599 --> 00:46:44,000
then immediately defaulted
Năstase screaming

583
00:46:44,000 --> 00:46:46,000
"Why can he do that?"

584
00:46:46,400 --> 00:46:49,079
So the referee defaulted Năstase.

585
00:46:49,079 --> 00:46:53,079
You know, within two minutes,
they're both defaulted, the match is over.

586
00:46:53,599 --> 00:46:57,679
{\an8}The funny part was 24 hours later
they reinstated both of them,

587
00:46:57,679 --> 00:47:00,159
{\an8}into the tournament,

588
00:47:00,159 --> 00:47:04,800
{\an8}because they couldn't have the guys
both going out, there was no round robin.

589
00:47:08,599 --> 00:47:11,960
{\an8}Do you think you are missing some rules
when such things happen?

590
00:47:13,079 --> 00:47:18,119
{\an8}Certainly, we are having a meeting
of the Professional Council this week.

591
00:47:18,559 --> 00:47:23,239
One of the major items on the agenda
is a code of conduct for tennis players.

592
00:47:23,559 --> 00:47:27,639
If a player commits
a gross infraction of the rules,

593
00:47:28,639 --> 00:47:31,840
very gross, maybe you take
a set away from him.

594
00:47:32,920 --> 00:47:37,119
I would have them, yesterday,
rather than default Năstase,

595
00:47:37,760 --> 00:47:40,280
when he is serving at 1-4, 15-40,

596
00:47:40,760 --> 00:47:43,159
just say to him
"It's 1-5, 15-40."

597
00:47:43,599 --> 00:47:47,960
{\an8}Arthur Ashe helped
write the code of conduct,

598
00:47:48,400 --> 00:47:50,360
writing 500 pages,

599
00:47:51,000 --> 00:47:53,280
which were afterwards reduced,

600
00:47:54,320 --> 00:47:57,440
or 500 pages of notes,

601
00:47:57,920 --> 00:48:00,960
because he had experiences
with Năstase of all kinds!

602
00:48:01,400 --> 00:48:05,159
{\an8}If he sees me in the locker room
or something, he'll go...

603
00:48:05,880 --> 00:48:08,320
{\an8}It sounds crazy, but this is Năstase.

604
00:48:08,679 --> 00:48:10,800
{\an8}I don't think of him as a man.

605
00:48:10,800 --> 00:48:13,519
{\an8}I think of him as
30 years old, going on 10.

606
00:48:14,000 --> 00:48:16,000
{\an8}Something's gonna have to be done.

607
00:48:16,480 --> 00:48:19,000
{\an8}A couple of guys should
jump over the net and threaten him.

608
00:48:19,400 --> 00:48:22,800
{\an8}Listen, Ilie, I want a nice match,
just go out and play tennis,

609
00:48:22,800 --> 00:48:27,400
{\an8}but if you start pulling the crap
you've pulled against others,

610
00:48:27,400 --> 00:48:30,079
I'm not gonna tell you when,
but I'm gonna deck you.

611
00:48:30,079 --> 00:48:34,960
The good thing about playing Năstase is
there's a chance he'll get defaulted.

612
00:48:35,519 --> 00:48:38,679
So you want to hang in there,
there's no telling when he'll go crazy.

613
00:48:39,639 --> 00:48:41,920
Are you going to behave
better in the future?

614
00:48:42,719 --> 00:48:44,039
Do you think I'm bad?

615
00:48:45,440 --> 00:48:48,000
We need a code of conduct
so it's absolutely laid down

616
00:48:48,000 --> 00:48:51,840
what happens when
one does this and one does that.

617
00:48:52,639 --> 00:48:56,239
I'm saying if they want me
to be perfect or professional,

618
00:48:56,239 --> 00:48:58,480
I want the umpire to be professional.

619
00:48:59,079 --> 00:49:00,320
That's all I'm asking.

620
00:49:19,679 --> 00:49:21,320
Do you feel different from normal people?

621
00:49:21,760 --> 00:49:24,840
No, I don't realise
who I am or what I'm doing.

622
00:49:25,400 --> 00:49:27,920
Everyday I'm involved in the game so...

623
00:49:31,320 --> 00:49:35,239
So the next morning I saw in
the breakfast room of the Grand Hotel

624
00:49:35,599 --> 00:49:41,639
Arthur sitting close to the windows,
and suddenly I saw a kind of...

625
00:49:42,679 --> 00:49:48,039
a big bunch of flowers moving
through the tables there,

626
00:49:48,639 --> 00:49:51,079
and behind these big flowers was...

627
00:49:52,039 --> 00:49:53,480
Ilie Năstase.

628
00:49:54,400 --> 00:49:55,519
Going like this,

629
00:49:56,599 --> 00:49:58,840
approaching Arthur's table,

630
00:49:59,320 --> 00:50:01,719
taking the flowers and saying:

631
00:50:02,800 --> 00:50:04,719
"Mr. Ashe, I apologise."

632
00:50:05,159 --> 00:50:08,800
After last night,
when you left in an temper,

633
00:50:09,159 --> 00:50:11,239
when did you start talking to Năstase?

634
00:50:11,239 --> 00:50:14,599
We started talking
in the locker rooms!

635
00:50:16,519 --> 00:50:20,599
Look, between Năstase and myself,
it will blow over in five to ten...

636
00:50:21,360 --> 00:50:22,920
Five or ten days.

637
00:50:23,880 --> 00:50:25,519
That's just the way he is.

638
00:50:25,519 --> 00:50:28,360
I just decided I wasn't
going to take it on the court.

639
00:50:28,360 --> 00:50:30,360
Off the court it's something else.

640
00:50:30,360 --> 00:50:32,679
I just said hello to him
five minutes ago.

641
00:50:33,159 --> 00:50:36,679
I cannot be like Ashe, for instance.
Or Ashe cannot be like me.

642
00:50:36,679 --> 00:50:39,400
So why do you want me to change now,
when I'm 30?

643
00:50:40,639 --> 00:50:44,239
Well, you know,
he did call Arthur Negroni,

644
00:50:44,239 --> 00:50:47,840
{\an8}and today if he did that he'd be...
you know, put in jail.

645
00:50:51,920 --> 00:50:54,159
{\an8}Tennis great
Serena Williams is speaking out

646
00:50:54,159 --> 00:50:56,719
{\an8}against another legendary
star of the sport,

647
00:50:56,719 --> 00:51:01,239
{\an8}accused of making a shocking remark
about her unborn child.

648
00:51:02,360 --> 00:51:06,280
Controversy struck the ITF
press conference on Friday.

649
00:51:06,599 --> 00:51:11,280
{\an8}Romanian team captain Ilie Năstase,
once a No. 1 tennis star himself,

650
00:51:11,280 --> 00:51:14,400
is now facing serious backlash
after he was overheard

651
00:51:14,400 --> 00:51:16,400
making racially insensitive remarks.

652
00:51:16,719 --> 00:51:21,039
Năstase allegedly said "Let's see
what color it has, chocolate with milk?"

653
00:51:21,039 --> 00:51:23,559
{\an8}His words have ignited
a firestorm of criticism,

654
00:51:23,559 --> 00:51:26,639
{\an8}with many condemning
Năstase's inappropriate comment.

655
00:51:27,280 --> 00:51:29,400
I think it's a good thing for her...

656
00:51:30,039 --> 00:51:32,119
Let's see what color the baby will be!

657
00:51:32,119 --> 00:51:35,480
It's nice to have a kid, in my opinion.

658
00:51:36,400 --> 00:51:40,199
Serena Williams, who had recently
shared her pregnancy through a selfie,

659
00:51:40,519 --> 00:51:42,320
slammed Năstase on Instagram.

660
00:51:42,760 --> 00:51:45,000
In a powerful quote, she stated:

661
00:51:45,000 --> 00:51:48,760
"It disappoints me to know we live in
a society where people like Ilie Năstase

662
00:51:49,159 --> 00:51:52,840
"can make such racist comments
towards myself and an unborn child."

663
00:51:53,519 --> 00:51:57,960
{\an8}I know he didn't mean it in a bad way,
I've known him a long time.

664
00:51:58,559 --> 00:52:05,119
{\an8}But I told him to think twice
before he makes such remarks.

665
00:52:09,519 --> 00:52:14,079
{\an8}I think it hurts him to be
in the middle of this kind of story,

666
00:52:14,079 --> 00:52:15,639
{\an8}because that's not him.

667
00:52:15,639 --> 00:52:20,280
{\an8}You know, things have changed since
what he would say and get away with.

668
00:52:20,800 --> 00:52:24,119
You just have to be
more cautious in what you say,

669
00:52:24,119 --> 00:52:26,480
and hopefully he learned his lesson.

670
00:52:26,480 --> 00:52:31,320
He unfortunately got involved saying
some things where we would say...

671
00:52:32,159 --> 00:52:34,679
"That's just the way he was,
that's the way he is."

672
00:52:35,880 --> 00:52:38,000
But, you know,
you just can't do that today.

673
00:52:39,760 --> 00:52:42,280
He made stupid comments all the time,

674
00:52:42,639 --> 00:52:46,679
{\an8}but we used to go "That's Năstase,
don't worry about it, that's Nasty."

675
00:52:47,039 --> 00:52:50,760
But deep down I know the essence
of who he is, he's got a good heart.

676
00:53:01,079 --> 00:53:02,039
Hey, Commie, how are you?

677
00:53:02,400 --> 00:53:05,679
Commie sounded
nicer than Communist.

678
00:53:07,440 --> 00:53:13,719
We were friends, it didn't matter
that one guy was from South Africa,

679
00:53:13,719 --> 00:53:16,679
another from Kenya or the US.
We were all equal.

680
00:53:17,559 --> 00:53:20,280
In the locker rooms,
we were all the same.

681
00:53:21,280 --> 00:53:24,679
He had names for all his rivals,
Tom Okker he'd call Omelette,

682
00:53:24,679 --> 00:53:26,079
like cheese omelette.

683
00:53:26,079 --> 00:53:27,880
He'd call Stan Smith Godzilla,

684
00:53:28,400 --> 00:53:32,360
he'd call Arthur Ashe, who was
of course an African-American, Negroni.

685
00:53:32,880 --> 00:53:35,119
He'd kid Jimmy Connor,
call him a baby,

686
00:53:35,119 --> 00:53:37,320
"you want your mummy to hold
your hand?"

687
00:53:37,320 --> 00:53:38,480
It was funny.

688
00:53:38,480 --> 00:53:42,400
He calls me crazy, he calls me a goon,
he calls me a lot of things.

689
00:53:42,400 --> 00:53:44,360
Am I gonna take offense at that?

690
00:53:44,360 --> 00:53:48,679
I called him Nasty, I even
sometimes called him Dad. Hey, Dad!

691
00:53:48,679 --> 00:53:51,079
I called him Gypsy,
he called me Russian.

692
00:53:52,000 --> 00:53:54,480
Yeah, that was him.
He had a nickname for everybody.

693
00:53:55,039 --> 00:53:58,840
He'd come in and say it
and nobody would think twice about it.

694
00:53:59,159 --> 00:54:02,480
But all the guys used
to still love him for this,

695
00:54:02,480 --> 00:54:05,039
because he was so friendly off the court.

696
00:54:07,039 --> 00:54:10,920
{\an8}We didn't have any money in the old days,
we couldn't afford a coach.

697
00:54:11,639 --> 00:54:13,199
{\an8}so we helped each other.

698
00:54:13,840 --> 00:54:16,559
We would eat together,
talk about tennis all the time,

699
00:54:16,559 --> 00:54:19,679
So we were all very close
and everybody knew each other.

700
00:54:19,679 --> 00:54:23,519
Because we didn't have a team of people
around us to insulate us.

701
00:54:23,840 --> 00:54:26,199
We weren't insulated, we didn't have that.

702
00:54:26,199 --> 00:54:28,800
So we had to rely on
each other like family.

703
00:54:29,719 --> 00:54:32,079
Năstase was too much for me.

704
00:54:35,159 --> 00:54:38,280
He was too fast for me,
the way he played...

705
00:54:39,320 --> 00:54:42,280
- He played like--
- I'm not fast!

706
00:54:45,440 --> 00:54:46,800
I believe he is...

707
00:54:47,559 --> 00:54:49,840
- Have you ever defeated him?
- Never.

708
00:54:49,840 --> 00:54:53,199
- The day will come.
- Yes, for sure!

709
00:54:53,519 --> 00:54:57,079
{\an8}I remember we went to
the cinema in Paris, for example,

710
00:54:57,519 --> 00:55:00,159
{\an8}we went to the shows,
Champs-Élysées,

711
00:55:00,559 --> 00:55:03,639
sometimes it happened like this,
we were helping each other.

712
00:55:03,639 --> 00:55:08,239
I practiced with Orantes,
with Ilie, we practiced on Mondays,

713
00:55:08,239 --> 00:55:10,639
then we played
semifinals against each other.

714
00:55:11,159 --> 00:55:13,639
Today, this is not possible.

715
00:55:14,760 --> 00:55:16,800
Everybody was pretty much
the same at the time,

716
00:55:16,800 --> 00:55:20,239
there weren't any special
places for the top players,

717
00:55:20,239 --> 00:55:24,199
so even in the locker rooms,
you still had players sort of...

718
00:55:24,760 --> 00:55:29,239
in their section of the lockers,
but players were together quite a bit.

719
00:55:30,000 --> 00:55:32,199
It was a little more friendly, in an way,

720
00:55:32,760 --> 00:55:35,599
everybody was pretty much
treated the same, so it was...

721
00:55:35,920 --> 00:55:38,119
I think it was more fun at that time,

722
00:55:38,119 --> 00:55:42,599
I think they're losing some of
that camaraderie that you had in general.

723
00:55:43,199 --> 00:55:48,719
{\an8}After training, in the evening...
Mr. Năstase here was the same as ever.

724
00:55:48,719 --> 00:55:52,239
In the evening, 7 or 8 of us
would go to a pizzeria.

725
00:55:52,679 --> 00:55:54,440
Năstase, pay for your pizza.

726
00:55:54,800 --> 00:55:59,559
Ion, you know I never have money.
To this day, I haven't seen that money.

727
00:56:00,039 --> 00:56:01,800
Can I have a loan?

728
00:56:01,800 --> 00:56:05,239
We all contributed a dollar or two.

729
00:56:06,159 --> 00:56:08,719
Or francs, whatever it was.

730
00:56:09,039 --> 00:56:13,400
We bought 5 pizzas
and shared them between 8 or 9 of us.

731
00:56:13,920 --> 00:56:15,679
The next day, we were friends.

732
00:56:16,079 --> 00:56:19,599
These two were absolutely
from another planet.

733
00:56:20,679 --> 00:56:23,400
They won't make them
like that again. Never.

734
00:56:24,000 --> 00:56:26,719
That can't exist in today's tennis.

735
00:56:28,119 --> 00:56:30,440
These are people who
have traveled without a coach.

736
00:56:31,719 --> 00:56:35,000
{\an8}You have to understand
they grew without a coach,

737
00:56:35,000 --> 00:56:36,599
they trained each other.

738
00:56:37,039 --> 00:56:39,280
{\an8}We depended on one another, you know.

739
00:56:39,679 --> 00:56:44,440
To travel together, to warm up together
and be there for one another.

740
00:56:44,760 --> 00:56:47,920
So yes,
there was a very close fraternity

741
00:56:48,480 --> 00:56:52,360
and likewise,
as we moved into the mid-70s,

742
00:56:52,360 --> 00:56:54,599
when tennis prospered.

743
00:56:55,920 --> 00:56:59,480
Mixed doubles was made for
a showman of Ilie Năstase's gifts.

744
00:57:06,960 --> 00:57:09,159
{\an8}We all wanted to dress like him.

745
00:57:09,159 --> 00:57:11,960
{\an8}because he was
the first one wearing colours

746
00:57:11,960 --> 00:57:16,840
and he was wearing these wristbands,
sometimes Romanian wristbands,

747
00:57:17,480 --> 00:57:19,840
that looked like my rasta wristbands.

748
00:57:20,239 --> 00:57:24,639
He had this elegance about him
and yes, you could tell he was real.

749
00:57:25,239 --> 00:57:27,199
Because he was talking the truth.

750
00:57:27,639 --> 00:57:30,679
Sometimes using bad words,
which was great, we loved it.

751
00:57:30,679 --> 00:57:33,000
Watching it, it was, like, bad!

752
00:57:37,159 --> 00:57:39,960
There were a lot of characters back then,
it was a great time in tennis.

753
00:57:39,960 --> 00:57:42,119
{\an8}Because of people like...

754
00:57:43,119 --> 00:57:47,360
{\an8}Năstase was one of those people
who opened it up, like whoa!

755
00:57:48,159 --> 00:57:52,639
This isn't just, like, the Country Club,
this is a little different.

756
00:57:58,079 --> 00:58:00,519
Năstase could be hilarious.

757
00:58:02,119 --> 00:58:06,840
{\an8}The thing about Nasty was
he had the innate timing of a clown.

758
00:58:07,800 --> 00:58:10,719
{\an8}To be a good clown, it's all about timing.

759
00:58:20,679 --> 00:58:26,039
I have the opportunity of introducing
maybe one of the best matches here,

760
00:58:26,039 --> 00:58:27,480
at Forest Hills.

761
00:58:27,480 --> 00:58:31,559
First, from Romania,
the great Ilie Năstase!

762
00:58:37,480 --> 00:58:40,320
And also, from Rhode Island,

763
00:58:41,159 --> 00:58:45,639
one of the future greats
of the game, Franklin Telly!

764
00:59:08,159 --> 00:59:09,119
Out!

765
00:59:11,519 --> 00:59:12,880
15 - all.

766
00:59:14,239 --> 00:59:16,960
Arey ou trying to make a monkey
out of me?

767
00:59:25,960 --> 00:59:29,280
You know your problem?
You are too temperamental!

768
00:59:30,000 --> 00:59:31,599
Let's play serious now.

769
01:00:17,760 --> 01:00:19,199
Wimbledon, 1975.

770
01:00:19,760 --> 01:00:24,039
Nasty hadn't liked this lineswoman's call,
so he asked to have her moved.

771
01:00:24,559 --> 01:00:28,280
His request was granted
and, gallantly, he carried her chair.

772
01:00:29,639 --> 01:00:33,599
{\an8}Those were exactly his jokes.
He was like a child, you know.

773
01:00:34,239 --> 01:00:37,599
This means two balls in a let call.
This means one ball.

774
01:00:37,599 --> 01:00:39,440
So you take it however you like.

775
01:00:45,800 --> 01:00:47,079
Listen.

776
01:00:47,800 --> 01:00:49,039
Listen carefully.

777
01:00:49,679 --> 01:00:51,119
If you want to film me,

778
01:00:52,280 --> 01:00:54,719
you need to pay,
you and your friend.

779
01:00:57,400 --> 01:00:58,320
How much?

780
01:00:59,639 --> 01:01:02,599
I am very expensive. Too expensive.

781
01:01:13,800 --> 01:01:18,039
{\an8}First of all, it was at the Hilton,
I think, and they gave us a room.

782
01:01:18,400 --> 01:01:22,719
{\an8}Eddie Dibbs' birthday, is that the one
he's talking about? With the cake?

783
01:01:23,280 --> 01:01:24,519
Oh boy.

784
01:01:24,840 --> 01:01:26,519
Well, we were grown-up children.

785
01:01:26,960 --> 01:01:28,400
I don't know if he told you this.

786
01:01:28,400 --> 01:01:33,199
There had to be 30 people there,
my wife and Eddie's girlfriend and...

787
01:01:33,519 --> 01:01:36,639
Nasty and Borg were there.

788
01:01:36,639 --> 01:01:40,840
So we said, Nasty, we gotta
do something, we gotta get him a cake.

789
01:01:40,840 --> 01:01:43,639
And they brought out
a huge cake for my birthday.

790
01:01:44,000 --> 01:01:46,800
And there were two or three candles on it.

791
01:01:46,800 --> 01:01:50,840
And I'm standing on one side
and I go Eddie, blow out the candles!

792
01:01:50,840 --> 01:01:53,559
So me, like an idiot, not thinking,

793
01:01:53,880 --> 01:01:56,440
I go blow out the candles,
and as I bend down...

794
01:01:56,760 --> 01:01:58,719
I take his head and
push his head in the cake.

795
01:01:59,119 --> 01:02:03,559
Bang! Sticks my head
completely stuffed in it, like that!

796
01:02:04,320 --> 01:02:08,320
Then I looked up, I couldn't even see,
I was covered with cake.

797
01:02:08,320 --> 01:02:13,440
And that turned into probably
the best food fight I've ever been in.

798
01:02:13,760 --> 01:02:15,800
Within five seconds,

799
01:02:16,519 --> 01:02:18,800
the whole room was flying with stuff.

800
01:02:19,199 --> 01:02:20,679
The whole room...

801
01:02:21,119 --> 01:02:25,960
You had to hide under the table, 'cause
chairs were flying, everything was flying!

802
01:02:25,960 --> 01:02:28,840
That room was a mess.
It was a mess, and...

803
01:02:30,440 --> 01:02:32,920
One of us had to clean it up.
That was me.

804
01:02:40,320 --> 01:02:44,519
The bad boys, yeah, I love them.
I love Jimmy and Năstase together.

805
01:02:45,159 --> 01:02:49,599
The connection between Jimmy Connors
and Ilie Năstase was crazy.

806
01:02:50,320 --> 01:02:52,719
Because they went
over the limit sometimes.

807
01:02:53,519 --> 01:02:58,360
The two of them connected because
they were kindred spirits in many ways.

808
01:02:59,119 --> 01:03:02,559
Both of them became kind of...
not who I wanted to be,

809
01:03:02,559 --> 01:03:05,639
but they were the main
reason why I was watching tennis.

810
01:03:06,360 --> 01:03:10,159
Jimbo!
They were known as the Nasty Boys.

811
01:03:10,480 --> 01:03:15,119
They dressed alike, they put on
those big long socks, they came out...

812
01:03:16,199 --> 01:03:18,760
Started playing some
doubles together, I believe.

813
01:03:18,760 --> 01:03:21,719
{\an8}I mean, Ilie and Jimmy, they kind of...

814
01:03:22,280 --> 01:03:24,320
{\an8}made tennis cool, in a way,

815
01:03:24,320 --> 01:03:25,440
where it wasn't

816
01:03:27,400 --> 01:03:31,000
only the white men's sport wearing
white clothes, not saying anything,

817
01:03:31,320 --> 01:03:33,159
but suddenly it became
a little bit of rock 'n' roll.

818
01:03:34,280 --> 01:03:36,760
The ball was on the line!

819
01:03:38,960 --> 01:03:39,960
On the line!

820
01:03:43,519 --> 01:03:46,719
The ball was on the line,
It touched the chalk.

821
01:03:47,199 --> 01:03:48,360
It was on the line!

822
01:03:48,679 --> 01:03:50,800
{\an8}On the court, they were...

823
01:03:51,719 --> 01:03:53,360
{\an8}Completely nuts altogether!

824
01:03:53,360 --> 01:03:56,239
{\an8}I remember some matches they had
at the US Open that were...

825
01:03:56,639 --> 01:03:57,559
a nightmare!

826
01:04:01,519 --> 01:04:04,320
In the doubles final,
Tom Okker and Marty Riessen

827
01:04:04,320 --> 01:04:06,920
lost to the flamboyant
Năstase and Connors

828
01:04:06,920 --> 01:04:09,480
in some of the wildest tennis in years.

829
01:04:21,519 --> 01:04:25,079
Jimmy Connors, a few words
for Romanian television, may I?

830
01:04:25,440 --> 01:04:28,599
- What would You like me to say?
- Only a few words.

831
01:04:29,119 --> 01:04:30,840
Your intentions in the future.

832
01:04:31,400 --> 01:04:34,039
I will play some more
doubles with Năstase,

833
01:04:34,039 --> 01:04:36,920
I hope we can win at Wimbledon,
or Forest Hills once again.

834
01:04:52,440 --> 01:04:55,440
Oh yes, he was a mentor,
and oh yes, he influenced me.

835
01:04:55,840 --> 01:04:59,639
And I say this from the heart because,
you know, some good, some bad.

836
01:04:59,639 --> 01:05:02,239
But that was my choice.

837
01:05:02,719 --> 01:05:05,719
And we became more than that. Friends.

838
01:05:06,199 --> 01:05:07,440
Do you think I'm tired?

839
01:05:08,880 --> 01:05:09,880
No.

840
01:05:10,599 --> 01:05:12,199
He's the one who is tired!

841
01:05:22,920 --> 01:05:25,920
- Come on, boy, let's go!
- I'm going, I'm going.

842
01:05:36,519 --> 01:05:40,840
When he says I'm part of his family,
that, to me, is the best.

843
01:05:41,199 --> 01:05:44,960
That's the best, because
we've been through more than just...

844
01:05:45,880 --> 01:05:46,800
tennis together.

845
01:05:55,199 --> 01:05:57,480
I mean,
Jimmy was the best at the US Open.

846
01:05:57,920 --> 01:06:02,079
But Năstase, because he's Romanian
and he's not from a huge country,

847
01:06:02,440 --> 01:06:06,159
he represents everybody
who's not from the USA or UK.

848
01:06:06,800 --> 01:06:09,159
{\an8}If you're from
a smaller country, you know,

849
01:06:09,599 --> 01:06:11,400
{\an8}you're probably gonna want Năstase,

850
01:06:12,000 --> 01:06:15,159
you can feel it's
the big guys versus the little guys.

851
01:06:15,559 --> 01:06:19,960
And Năstase was a big reason
our sport grew so much.

852
01:06:21,000 --> 01:06:24,119
I always liked Jimmy Connors' comment.

853
01:06:24,440 --> 01:06:27,039
"I could never figure out
how hard he'd hit the ball,

854
01:06:27,440 --> 01:06:29,039
"then I realised he didn't know either."

855
01:06:29,480 --> 01:06:33,039
{\an8}Ilie Năstase was the rockstar of his time.

856
01:06:33,360 --> 01:06:36,840
And no question that
Ilie Năstase helped the brand.

857
01:06:37,320 --> 01:06:42,920
What he did was... he gave us
credibility with elite athletes.

858
01:06:42,920 --> 01:06:45,519
That is hard to get, and we got it.

859
01:06:45,880 --> 01:06:49,719
Three months into the brand, we had
the No. 1 tennis player in the world.

860
01:06:50,079 --> 01:06:53,559
He had won the US Open and
the French Open and was flamboyant.

861
01:06:54,280 --> 01:06:57,119
It just set the tone for
our whole tennis business.

862
01:06:57,840 --> 01:07:01,760
We immediately followed him with
his doubles partner, Jimmy Connors.

863
01:07:01,760 --> 01:07:06,199
He wasn't ranked as high as Ilie
at that time, so we signed him for 5,000.

864
01:07:06,199 --> 01:07:09,360
But it led to a tennis... ethos, really.

865
01:07:10,000 --> 01:07:13,760
That led to McEnroe, Billy Jean King,
Sampras and Agassi

866
01:07:14,119 --> 01:07:16,920
and Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz.

867
01:07:16,920 --> 01:07:18,880
It was all started by Ilie Năstase.

868
01:07:20,840 --> 01:07:24,840
I think I was fortunate
to be a tennis player.

869
01:07:25,239 --> 01:07:28,440
Especially in this period, you know.

870
01:07:29,039 --> 01:07:32,079
Because players like
Pancho Gonzáles and Segura,

871
01:07:32,559 --> 01:07:34,400
maybe they are
better players than we are,

872
01:07:34,880 --> 01:07:38,360
but they didn't win any money,
or they did, but less than we win now.

873
01:07:38,360 --> 01:07:42,159
{\an8}A few of them were traveling with
their wives or with their girlfriends,

874
01:07:42,519 --> 01:07:45,840
{\an8}but the majority of the players
couldn't afford taking another person,

875
01:07:46,159 --> 01:07:48,440
so they just travelled on their own.

876
01:07:48,440 --> 01:07:52,320
So they interacted with each other
a lot more than they do today.

877
01:07:52,320 --> 01:07:55,119
{\an8}For us Eastern Europeans
it was not possible

878
01:07:55,119 --> 01:07:59,159
{\an8}that parents would follow me to Paris,
or follow me to Wimbledon,

879
01:07:59,159 --> 01:08:01,360
because they couldn't travel.

880
01:08:01,360 --> 01:08:03,079
So, for example,

881
01:08:04,159 --> 01:08:08,840
when I was in Wimbledon or in France,
my parents weren't there.

882
01:08:09,360 --> 01:08:14,239
{\an8}Back then, for US tournaments,
we needed an invitation.

883
01:08:15,320 --> 01:08:17,960
Ilie asked Edy McGoldrick

884
01:08:18,520 --> 01:08:22,159
to invite Mariana Simionescu
and I to the US circuit.

885
01:08:22,720 --> 01:08:24,039
That's how I started.

886
01:08:24,039 --> 01:08:27,039
Of course, later
Ion Ţiriac became my manager,

887
01:08:27,520 --> 01:08:33,520
so to us, that generation of
young women and men too,

888
01:08:33,960 --> 01:08:35,359
they were both idols.

889
01:08:36,560 --> 01:08:39,159
The first time I got to France,

890
01:08:39,680 --> 01:08:41,039
to Roland-Garros,

891
01:08:42,279 --> 01:08:44,840
I was 18, Mariana was 17.

892
01:08:45,159 --> 01:08:47,000
Ilie and Ion took care of us.

893
01:08:47,439 --> 01:08:49,159
They were a huge help.

894
01:08:57,760 --> 01:08:59,479
Oh my God!

895
01:09:17,880 --> 01:09:20,039
See how strong the bandito is?

896
01:09:20,359 --> 01:09:21,520
The bandito ?

897
01:09:22,600 --> 01:09:25,399
You see the power he has, the guy?

898
01:09:26,039 --> 01:09:28,800
You're nuts.
What if he dropped you on the head?

899
01:09:29,840 --> 01:09:32,319
Now I'm awake. I'm OK.

900
01:09:32,319 --> 01:09:33,960
Energized before the match!

901
01:09:33,960 --> 01:09:36,840
- Careful, he could hit you.
- I'm awake now.

902
01:09:42,880 --> 01:09:45,039
You want me to do it?
Chris, you want me to?

903
01:09:45,520 --> 01:09:48,319
- What's this?
- I'm pulling my pants down.

904
01:09:48,319 --> 01:09:49,560
I'm just kidding.

905
01:09:52,439 --> 01:09:55,279
Ilie, as a person, was very sensitive.

906
01:09:56,000 --> 01:09:57,680
He had a big heart, Ilie.

907
01:09:58,119 --> 01:10:01,319
He helped a lot of people, he helped...

908
01:10:02,000 --> 01:10:04,600
{\an8}If you had problems, he was always there.

909
01:10:05,199 --> 01:10:09,800
{\an8}Because of the revolution and the war
in Iran, I did not play for four years,

910
01:10:09,800 --> 01:10:11,239
{\an8}I did not hit one ball.

911
01:10:11,600 --> 01:10:15,119
And then I came to France, I remember
I had nowhere to go to sleep.

912
01:10:15,439 --> 01:10:20,119
I remember he was practicing
with Guillermo Vilas on court no. 3.

913
01:10:20,560 --> 01:10:24,920
I waited until he finished,
I didn't know if he remembers me or not.

914
01:10:25,239 --> 01:10:29,319
After they finished the practice,
he came out of the court

915
01:10:29,920 --> 01:10:32,560
and I got up and said Hello, Ilie.

916
01:10:32,560 --> 01:10:36,600
And he goes "Oh my God, Mansour,
where have you been?

917
01:10:36,920 --> 01:10:40,279
"I thought you were dead
in the revolution or...

918
01:10:40,600 --> 01:10:42,479
"I'm very happy to see you."

919
01:10:42,840 --> 01:10:45,000
He asked if there is
anything he can do for me,

920
01:10:45,479 --> 01:10:49,960
he said "I can help," which was
very kind and generous of him.

921
01:10:51,880 --> 01:10:57,399
{\an8}I would describe him as
completely crazy in a mostly good way.

922
01:10:57,399 --> 01:11:00,840
{\an8}You know, he would give you
the shirt off his back.

923
01:11:01,479 --> 01:11:04,239
People he didn't even know,
I saw him many times,

924
01:11:04,239 --> 01:11:06,920
he'd literally give them his own clothes.

925
01:11:10,600 --> 01:11:14,319
At the times, players felt
more free to express themselves,

926
01:11:14,319 --> 01:11:17,640
there wasn't as much at stake,
maybe, if they made a mistake.

927
01:11:17,640 --> 01:11:20,720
Yeah, plus, you have
to consider two things.

928
01:11:20,720 --> 01:11:23,840
The rules were not as strict
as they are today,

929
01:11:24,159 --> 01:11:27,479
and the umpires were
not as good as they are today.

930
01:11:27,479 --> 01:11:30,840
Most of the time, the tournament
organizer would ask a friend

931
01:11:31,279 --> 01:11:34,079
Could you come tomorrow
and umpire this match?

932
01:11:40,279 --> 01:11:43,399
If the umpires are wrong
I protest every time.

933
01:11:43,399 --> 01:11:45,319
We play for money, you know?

934
01:11:45,319 --> 01:11:49,319
Everytime they make a mistake,
it's like taking money from your pockets.

935
01:11:49,760 --> 01:11:53,920
I think the umpires
are not professional enough.

936
01:12:01,600 --> 01:12:05,560
I was never wrong about umpire calls.

937
01:12:06,399 --> 01:12:08,119
I just knew.

938
01:12:08,840 --> 01:12:12,840
I knew if the ball was out
or not, with my back turned.

939
01:12:12,840 --> 01:12:16,560
I only argued calls for solid reasons.

940
01:12:16,880 --> 01:12:19,079
Never when they were right.

941
01:12:19,399 --> 01:12:22,600
McEnroe sometimes did,
but not me, never.

942
01:12:31,920 --> 01:12:35,159
Outside the gate,
tickets cost 5 times more.

943
01:12:35,159 --> 01:12:38,159
There were 20,000 spectators.

944
01:12:38,560 --> 01:12:42,800
{\an8}10,000 had come to boo him,
10,000 had come to hug him.

945
01:12:42,800 --> 01:12:46,199
To top it off, back then
McEnroe was a bit mental.

946
01:12:46,880 --> 01:12:49,279
{\an8}The umpire was a man
named Frank Hammond.

947
01:12:49,640 --> 01:12:53,199
{\an8}And Hammond was this roly-poly guy
whom all the players loved.

948
01:12:53,560 --> 01:12:56,600
He was very even-minded
and very calm.

949
01:12:56,600 --> 01:12:59,439
But Năstase and McEnroe
started getting into it.

950
01:12:59,439 --> 01:13:03,239
Frank was the first professional
tennis umpire of that era.

951
01:13:03,680 --> 01:13:07,199
He was not equipped
to deal with that kind of crisis.

952
01:13:08,199 --> 01:13:10,840
I lost to Ilie a few times,
but that time I was like

953
01:13:11,199 --> 01:13:14,840
"OK, this is enough,
I'm not accepting this losing anymore."

954
01:13:14,840 --> 01:13:17,399
I was sort of playing
the best tennis of my life

955
01:13:17,399 --> 01:13:21,319
{\an8}and I think Ilie knew early on
that he wasn't gonna win,

956
01:13:21,319 --> 01:13:24,000
{\an8}so he decided to make
a complete circus out of it.

957
01:13:24,000 --> 01:13:28,960
{\an8}Frank Hammond was a players' umpire.
Loved all the players. Loved Năstase.

958
01:13:31,079 --> 01:13:32,840
He called me son of a bitch.

959
01:13:33,479 --> 01:13:36,680
Tell him at least
to call me Mister son of a bitch!

960
01:13:36,680 --> 01:13:38,399
- I never heard that.
- No?

961
01:13:38,760 --> 01:13:40,800
Maybe you can read
his lips better than me.

962
01:13:41,119 --> 01:13:44,199
I'm Romanian and I can read his lips.
You cannot read his lips?

963
01:13:44,199 --> 01:13:46,880
It was one of the first
night matches of the US Open,

964
01:13:46,880 --> 01:13:50,279
there was an energy, people
had had a couple of drinks,

965
01:13:50,279 --> 01:13:52,640
and, you know,
Ilie was feeling the crowd.

966
01:14:00,920 --> 01:14:03,760
Tell him not to talk to me
when I play the point!

967
01:14:03,760 --> 01:14:05,560
If you're a good umpire.

968
01:14:06,039 --> 01:14:09,680
Frank Hammond was trying
with every fiber of his being

969
01:14:09,680 --> 01:14:11,920
to get Năstase to calm down,

970
01:14:11,920 --> 01:14:16,560
trying to talk to him off the microphone
in the changers, "Please, Ilie!"

971
01:14:18,720 --> 01:14:20,159
Ladies and gentlemen, please.

972
01:14:21,000 --> 01:14:23,560
If you quiet down,
we can continue the match.

973
01:14:24,119 --> 01:14:25,800
It's the only way we can.

974
01:14:29,239 --> 01:14:32,399
Both players were just using the crowd
and going nuts and doing stuff.

975
01:14:32,399 --> 01:14:34,720
It was just the worst of all time.

976
01:14:43,520 --> 01:14:44,439
Ilie!

977
01:14:48,600 --> 01:14:49,680
I know, I know.

978
01:14:50,319 --> 01:14:51,600
I'm telling you to serve.

979
01:14:51,600 --> 01:14:55,199
You son of a bitch telling me to play?
How can I play like that?

980
01:14:55,199 --> 01:14:59,159
This was the one time, probably,
where I just said

981
01:14:59,159 --> 01:15:02,439
"I'm gonna sit back
and watch the master at work."

982
01:15:02,439 --> 01:15:04,840
To me, he was making
a total ass out of himself.

983
01:15:05,159 --> 01:15:08,279
{\an8}On the other hand,
that's what people wanted to see.

984
01:15:08,640 --> 01:15:11,800
Tennis is... we're playing
for the people watching us.

985
01:15:12,119 --> 01:15:15,439
They wanna be entertained,
they wanna laugh, they wanna smile,

986
01:15:15,439 --> 01:15:18,800
they wanna get angry, whatever,
it's part of the entertainment.

987
01:15:18,800 --> 01:15:22,239
And Ilie was probably
the No. 1 entertainer in tennis.

988
01:15:22,239 --> 01:15:24,079
Frank Hammond had had enough.

989
01:15:24,079 --> 01:15:27,000
Why they didn't both
get defaulted, I don't know.

990
01:15:29,039 --> 01:15:31,319
Game, set, match, McEnroe!

991
01:15:33,760 --> 01:15:36,720
The crowd in New York
was going absolutely berserk.

992
01:15:37,359 --> 01:15:42,319
They are throwing stuffs. It's crazy.
I didn't want him to be defaulted.

993
01:15:42,920 --> 01:15:44,520
He deserved to be defaulted.

994
01:15:50,079 --> 01:15:51,760
They took the guy out of the chair,

995
01:15:51,760 --> 01:15:54,800
it's the only time in my carrier
they took an umpire out of the chair.

996
01:15:55,319 --> 01:15:58,800
And then the referee came out
and he comes in the chair and I was like

997
01:15:58,800 --> 01:16:00,279
"Oh my God!"

998
01:16:01,159 --> 01:16:02,760
So, I'm like, forget it, let's just play.

999
01:16:02,760 --> 01:16:04,960
I don't care.
I'm going to beat his ass anyway.

1000
01:16:13,399 --> 01:16:15,520
Game, set, and match.

1001
01:16:17,399 --> 01:16:19,680
{\an8}He didn't want to do it
to embarrass Frank,

1002
01:16:19,680 --> 01:16:23,800
but it pretty much ended up ruining Frank
Hammond's career in many, many ways.

1003
01:16:23,800 --> 01:16:27,439
It wasn't really fair, but they were
worried about riots in the stands,

1004
01:16:27,439 --> 01:16:29,439
{\an8}it was as night match,
so a lot of reasons for it.

1005
01:16:29,439 --> 01:16:31,239
{\an8}I wasn't even happy I'd won.

1006
01:16:31,239 --> 01:16:34,159
I walked into the locker room,
I was about to go "You motherf..."

1007
01:16:35,279 --> 01:16:36,680
Then he's like Macaroni!

1008
01:16:37,039 --> 01:16:39,359
He's the only guy in the world
to call me Macaroni.

1009
01:16:39,920 --> 01:16:42,760
He says "Where are we going
for dinner? I got these two girls."

1010
01:16:42,760 --> 01:16:44,359
And I'm like...

1011
01:16:45,720 --> 01:16:48,560
"Whatever you want,"
and then, you know,

1012
01:16:48,560 --> 01:16:51,720
all of a sudden I'm having
dinner with him at 1 in the morning.

1013
01:18:19,119 --> 01:18:21,319
He had so many women
you couldn't even count.

1014
01:18:21,319 --> 01:18:23,960
I mean,
he had beauty queens, you name it.

1015
01:18:23,960 --> 01:18:27,000
Năstase was on top of the list
when it comes to that.

1016
01:18:29,079 --> 01:18:30,680
He makes the ground...

1017
01:18:31,199 --> 01:18:33,199
kind of like an earthquake, you know?

1018
01:18:33,720 --> 01:18:36,760
a small earthquake and
then a bigger earthquake.

1019
01:18:46,720 --> 01:18:49,760
He was very aware of his surroundings.

1020
01:18:49,760 --> 01:18:54,039
While we were playing doubles, he knew
where every woman was in the stands.

1021
01:18:55,000 --> 01:19:00,520
I was a good middleman: "Go talk to her,
see what she's doing tonight."

1022
01:19:01,880 --> 01:19:05,239
{\an8}His eyes and my eyes
just locked with each other

1023
01:19:05,720 --> 01:19:08,520
and he said
"You have got bedroom eyes."

1024
01:19:08,960 --> 01:19:11,119
He had the softest lips!

1025
01:19:11,119 --> 01:19:16,760
I had never kissed
such beautiful lips in my life, like this!

1026
01:19:17,560 --> 01:19:20,239
{\an8}He knows how I feel about him.

1027
01:19:20,239 --> 01:19:24,000
{\an8}I always have and always will.

1028
01:19:24,000 --> 01:19:25,960
He will always have a place in my heart.

1029
01:19:26,399 --> 01:19:28,199
He was very flirtatious.

1030
01:19:29,000 --> 01:19:33,159
You know, he was married, so,
you know, we were just always friends.

1031
01:19:33,520 --> 01:19:38,439
and we would meet... he would come
to my apartment or we go to Studio 54.

1032
01:19:39,159 --> 01:19:40,439
We just lived out lives.

1033
01:19:41,520 --> 01:19:44,680
It was a place you weren't judged.

1034
01:19:45,079 --> 01:19:49,079
You go downstairs and there
were mattresses laid out or whatever

1035
01:19:49,079 --> 01:19:50,840
and that was the place to be.

1036
01:20:13,520 --> 01:20:18,039
The people also loved Ilie
because he's more Latin

1037
01:20:18,039 --> 01:20:21,000
the way he is on the court,
the way he talks, the way he walks,

1038
01:20:21,000 --> 01:20:24,880
the way he wears his clothes,
it's always something special.

1039
01:20:25,199 --> 01:20:27,159
And he was a good-looking man.

1040
01:20:32,880 --> 01:20:35,399
- Want to greet anyone in Bucharest?
- All the girls.

1041
01:20:35,760 --> 01:20:37,640
Those who sent you
cables for your birthday?

1042
01:20:37,640 --> 01:20:42,680
Yes, and for my victories in Tbilisi
and at Wimbledon.

1043
01:20:43,079 --> 01:20:45,520
How does mail reach you
while you're traveling?

1044
01:20:45,960 --> 01:20:48,039
Is your address Ilie Năstase, Europe?

1045
01:20:48,760 --> 01:20:49,680
Sort of.

1046
01:21:02,960 --> 01:21:05,359
That's all I know.
But I love the melody.

1047
01:21:15,199 --> 01:21:17,279
Down with Ceauşescu!

1048
01:21:17,840 --> 01:21:18,800
...to the initiators...

1049
01:21:19,520 --> 01:21:21,840
which we consider to be...

1050
01:21:23,479 --> 01:21:24,399
To be...

1051
01:21:34,319 --> 01:21:35,359
Come inside.

1052
01:22:03,439 --> 01:22:06,279
I did not risk my life.
The people reigns supreme.

1053
01:22:06,720 --> 01:22:08,760
The people has proven its greatness.

1054
01:22:09,199 --> 01:22:12,119
For me to be here,
in the National Television building,

1055
01:22:12,119 --> 01:22:16,239
the people who, on the stadium,
cried as they heard the anthem

1056
01:22:16,720 --> 01:22:19,720
stood before machine guns
so I could talk to you now.

1057
01:22:20,239 --> 01:22:23,000
I urge all our sportspeople
to support the population,

1058
01:22:23,479 --> 01:22:25,760
just as our wonderful army defends them.

1059
01:22:26,239 --> 01:22:29,680
And to remain calm,
as true examples for the people,

1060
01:22:30,319 --> 01:22:32,119
as uplifting models.

1061
01:22:32,479 --> 01:22:35,640
The people needs each of us
in these awe-inspiring times.

1062
01:22:36,159 --> 01:22:39,920
Earlier, our great Ilie Năstase
left to reunite with his family in Paris.

1063
01:22:40,279 --> 01:22:46,439
Right now, he is our spokesperson
abroad, heralding this grand victory.

1064
01:22:48,920 --> 01:22:52,680
This Air France flight is the first
to arrive from Bucharest tonight.

1065
01:22:53,000 --> 01:22:56,439
Its 30 passengers,
joyful but tired,

1066
01:22:56,439 --> 01:22:58,720
were under siege on
Bucharest Airport for 4 hours.

1067
01:22:58,720 --> 01:23:00,960
On the first row, Ilie Năstase,
tennis player.

1068
01:23:01,680 --> 01:23:02,960
I've seen tanks there.

1069
01:23:03,640 --> 01:23:06,159
But if we continue to fight,
it will be all worth it.

1070
01:23:07,880 --> 01:23:09,439
We're the first out of there.

1071
01:23:09,920 --> 01:23:11,039
It's over.

1072
01:23:12,680 --> 01:23:15,239
After 25 years
of Ceauşescu's dictatorship,

1073
01:23:16,319 --> 01:23:21,800
the people, everyone,
even those who were close to him...

1074
01:23:22,479 --> 01:23:24,319
No one will support him.

1075
01:23:37,119 --> 01:23:40,039
And now, Comrade
Lieutenant General Marin Dragnea,

1076
01:23:40,039 --> 01:23:43,479
First Vice-President of
the National Council for Sports,

1077
01:23:43,479 --> 01:23:46,000
will give a medal to the best
Romanian sportsman of the year,

1078
01:23:46,000 --> 01:23:49,119
here to celebrate his victory!

1079
01:23:51,479 --> 01:23:54,800
During the Communist era,
all the Eastern European countries,

1080
01:23:54,800 --> 01:23:57,000
they wanted only the best sportsmen,

1081
01:23:57,000 --> 01:23:59,600
because they wanted
to present only the best.

1082
01:24:02,000 --> 01:24:05,399
{\an8}We were Romanians,
part of the Eastern Bloc,

1083
01:24:05,399 --> 01:24:10,239
{\an8}so it was harder for us,
both going abroad and returning.

1084
01:24:10,239 --> 01:24:13,399
Each time we returned to Romania,

1085
01:24:13,920 --> 01:24:18,239
if we stayed more than 20 days,
the government took back our passports.

1086
01:24:18,680 --> 01:24:20,119
We were being watched.

1087
01:24:21,239 --> 01:24:23,079
{\an8}When traveling for the Davis Cup,

1088
01:24:23,960 --> 01:24:27,239
{\an8}the embassy people
were always following us.

1089
01:24:27,239 --> 01:24:29,760
They knew where we were, what we did.

1090
01:24:30,199 --> 01:24:32,800
We were used to the pressure.

1091
01:24:37,159 --> 01:24:40,960
Tennis had become such a huge thing
in Romania because of these two guys,

1092
01:24:41,319 --> 01:24:43,439
Ţiriac first and then, of course, Năstase.

1093
01:24:44,119 --> 01:24:49,239
When the Davis Cup came there,
they put it in City Hall in Bucharest.

1094
01:24:49,840 --> 01:24:52,560
And these lines of people
just stretched around the city

1095
01:24:52,560 --> 01:24:54,720
to see and touch the Davis Cup.

1096
01:24:55,279 --> 01:24:56,600
It was a marvelous event.

1097
01:25:08,359 --> 01:25:10,399
He can beat them blindfolded!

1098
01:25:11,000 --> 01:25:14,199
Năstase runs circles
around the Americans.

1099
01:25:16,600 --> 01:25:18,199
To Romania, the Davis Cup

1100
01:25:19,800 --> 01:25:21,079
was something grand.

1101
01:25:21,079 --> 01:25:24,920
Seeing the American team,
with world champion Stan Smith,

1102
01:25:25,399 --> 01:25:28,600
seeing Ilie play against him
in the grand finale at Wimbledon...

1103
01:25:28,600 --> 01:25:32,319
Romanian TV didn't show
a lot of tennis back then.

1104
01:25:32,680 --> 01:25:35,199
But we could see the Davis Cup.

1105
01:25:35,920 --> 01:25:37,600
Ion Ţiriac and Ilie Năstase,

1106
01:25:37,960 --> 01:25:40,720
20 million people wish you good luck!

1107
01:25:41,319 --> 01:25:42,720
The best of luck!

1108
01:25:43,920 --> 01:25:48,760
In his mind, I think that had
a huge impact on Năstase.

1109
01:25:48,760 --> 01:25:51,199
I think he knew this was his chance.

1110
01:25:51,640 --> 01:25:55,079
{\an8}Because Romanians lost a couple
of finals in the Davis Cup in America

1111
01:25:55,079 --> 01:25:56,199
before the '72.

1112
01:25:56,560 --> 01:25:59,479
But this was Ilie's chance
to really prove himself

1113
01:25:59,800 --> 01:26:02,520
and I think that stayed
with him a long time.

1114
01:26:03,720 --> 01:26:06,840
That meeting back in 1972 in Bucharest

1115
01:26:07,439 --> 01:26:10,359
{\an8}was a perfect chance for Ceauşescu.

1116
01:26:10,920 --> 01:26:13,680
{\an8}The presence of the US team in Bucharest

1117
01:26:13,680 --> 01:26:19,520
was a new chance for him
to showcase the double game

1118
01:26:19,520 --> 01:26:23,159
that he played with the US and Russia.

1119
01:26:23,159 --> 01:26:27,079
The meeting happened
with Nixon's approval.

1120
01:26:27,520 --> 01:26:30,159
The international context was very tense,

1121
01:26:30,159 --> 01:26:33,520
after the Munich terrorist attack
on the Israeli athletes.

1122
01:26:34,199 --> 01:26:38,439
That year, in the Munich Olympics,
those Israeli athletes had been killed.

1123
01:26:38,439 --> 01:26:41,039
And we had two Jewish members
on our team,

1124
01:26:41,039 --> 01:26:46,880
So we came there, to Bucharest,
certainly concerned about our welfare,

1125
01:26:47,720 --> 01:26:50,119
how safe it was gonna be,

1126
01:26:50,720 --> 01:26:53,239
so we had very tight
security the whole time.

1127
01:26:53,680 --> 01:26:57,279
{\an8}Ceauşescu said,
if anything happened to anybody,

1128
01:26:57,880 --> 01:27:01,039
{\an8}heads would roll,
and I think he meant it literally.

1129
01:27:09,039 --> 01:27:11,880
I knew all the stories
about the Americans having to take

1130
01:27:11,880 --> 01:27:14,199
a different route
to the courts every day.

1131
01:27:14,199 --> 01:27:16,159
It was very dangerous.

1132
01:27:16,520 --> 01:27:18,560
We had guards in our hotel rooms.

1133
01:27:18,560 --> 01:27:22,880
We didn't get to go out that much,
all we did was maybe go to the stadium,

1134
01:27:23,399 --> 01:27:26,159
come back, and we had
protection everywhere.

1135
01:27:26,479 --> 01:27:29,319
Secret Service or whatever,
from the Romanian government.

1136
01:27:29,640 --> 01:27:31,920
It was pretty tough
to play in those conditions.

1137
01:27:33,119 --> 01:27:36,039
Năstase! Năstase!

1138
01:27:37,359 --> 01:27:41,920
You will be surprised,
the arena has had a complete makeover,

1139
01:27:42,239 --> 01:27:44,720
new bleachers, sacrificed roosters...

1140
01:27:45,399 --> 01:27:46,520
Not bad at all!

1141
01:27:47,560 --> 01:27:50,760
All the workers on the site,
carpenters, mechanics,

1142
01:27:51,159 --> 01:27:53,520
they are excited about the game.

1143
01:27:53,520 --> 01:27:56,479
For Comrade Ilie,
we'll make an excellent court!

1144
01:27:56,960 --> 01:28:00,880
They were playing on red clay,
behind the Iron Curtain for the first time

1145
01:28:01,319 --> 01:28:02,640
and it was a big deal.

1146
01:28:03,279 --> 01:28:06,399
{\an8}With Stan Smith serving
the way he was serving on grass,

1147
01:28:06,399 --> 01:28:08,439
the grass was very, very quick.

1148
01:28:08,439 --> 01:28:12,560
But on clay, it was sort of heavy clay,

1149
01:28:12,560 --> 01:28:15,279
because Ion Ţiriac was clever

1150
01:28:15,680 --> 01:28:17,720
and he knew how to prepare the court.

1151
01:28:17,720 --> 01:28:20,159
He said We're gonna
water these courts so much

1152
01:28:20,159 --> 01:28:23,239
that Godzilla Stan Smith
will think he's playing on a beach.

1153
01:28:24,640 --> 01:28:28,520
It's not Wimbledon, it's not Forest Hills,
it's not Roland-Garros.

1154
01:28:31,279 --> 01:28:33,319
The Davis Cup is in Bucharest.

1155
01:28:42,439 --> 01:28:43,439
He'd won the US Open

1156
01:28:43,439 --> 01:28:45,760
and now they were gonna play
the Davis Cup in Bucharest.

1157
01:28:46,079 --> 01:28:49,199
People said It's over.
The Americans don't have a chance.

1158
01:28:49,520 --> 01:28:51,079
I remember even Năstase saying

1159
01:28:51,079 --> 01:28:54,359
"We're 10-1 favorites
to beat the Americans."

1160
01:28:54,720 --> 01:28:58,800
We kind of joked that
all the linesmen were related to Ţiriac

1161
01:28:59,159 --> 01:29:01,960
so he was orchestrating everything.

1162
01:29:02,279 --> 01:29:04,960
We had a neutral umpire
from Argentina,

1163
01:29:05,479 --> 01:29:09,439
who was a big guy, but he was intimidated
by the situation, it was difficult.

1164
01:29:13,439 --> 01:29:18,840
At every mistake by the Americans,
the audience applauded and jumped up.

1165
01:29:19,520 --> 01:29:20,439
Myself included.

1166
01:29:21,399 --> 01:29:24,399
Very few countries
that I've heard until now

1167
01:29:25,199 --> 01:29:29,000
use the colorful language that
Romanians use when they're upset.

1168
01:29:29,680 --> 01:29:33,399
There were some terrible calls, there
were actually a lot of very bad calls.

1169
01:29:34,239 --> 01:29:38,399
I think, frankly, there was a lot of
deliberate cheating for the Romanians.

1170
01:29:38,960 --> 01:29:44,399
If you are in doubt, better to give
the point to our compatriots

1171
01:29:44,399 --> 01:29:45,800
than to the others.

1172
01:29:46,159 --> 01:29:50,000
And it was not just the Romanian case,

1173
01:29:50,000 --> 01:29:52,359
it was everywhere, to be honest,
in the Davis Cup.

1174
01:29:52,680 --> 01:29:58,000
And in 1980
there was not a neutral jury.

1175
01:29:58,399 --> 01:30:01,199
The umpire, the referee were local.

1176
01:30:02,479 --> 01:30:05,399
Just must be something
that I can't play in Romania.

1177
01:30:06,439 --> 01:30:09,119
But people don't understand that,
because...

1178
01:30:09,119 --> 01:30:12,199
They want me to win,
they don't want me to lose.

1179
01:30:12,199 --> 01:30:15,439
We are told the Năstase-Ţiriac duo
is rock solid?

1180
01:30:15,439 --> 01:30:16,439
So we hope...

1181
01:30:16,880 --> 01:30:19,399
Emotionally?
We know the technique is impeccable.

1182
01:30:19,399 --> 01:30:22,880
No, there's no problem between us.
No fracture.

1183
01:30:23,640 --> 01:30:27,640
There is nothing to confess.
This is just how things are.

1184
01:30:27,640 --> 01:30:33,079
We are professionals, but there's
a seven-year age gap between us.

1185
01:30:33,479 --> 01:30:37,880
As the Party has instructed,
we hope to win the Davis Cup,

1186
01:30:37,880 --> 01:30:40,560
and I don't see what could prevent us.

1187
01:30:40,920 --> 01:30:43,720
Năstase deserved
to be shot for one thing:

1188
01:30:43,720 --> 01:30:48,079
he only returned to the country
on the Monday of the Davis Cup week.

1189
01:30:48,079 --> 01:30:50,000
He had vanished for three weeks.

1190
01:30:50,760 --> 01:30:53,800
Probably with
his future wife or something.

1191
01:30:54,680 --> 01:30:56,439
By Tuesday, his palms were blistered.

1192
01:30:57,319 --> 01:31:03,199
Apparently, there are rumors that we've
had a falling-out, but it's not true.

1193
01:31:03,920 --> 01:31:07,479
Not true at all.
Ion and myself are friends.

1194
01:31:08,279 --> 01:31:10,239
We've always supported each other.

1195
01:31:11,920 --> 01:31:15,119
I never play well in Romania
because the crowds...

1196
01:31:16,720 --> 01:31:20,279
expect so much from me
and put so much pressure on me.

1197
01:31:27,960 --> 01:31:29,359
I really want

1198
01:31:30,520 --> 01:31:32,279
to win this Davis Cup.

1199
01:31:39,000 --> 01:31:42,720
They were counting on Ilie to
win that match, that opening.

1200
01:31:42,720 --> 01:31:43,880
That was the key of the whole thing.

1201
01:31:43,880 --> 01:31:47,239
He served for the first set,
leading with 9-8, and got broken

1202
01:31:47,239 --> 01:31:50,359
and that turned the whole match
and Smith won its straight sets.

1203
01:31:50,359 --> 01:31:55,000
Than the next day, he and Ţiriac
were bickering a lot during the doubles.

1204
01:32:10,279 --> 01:32:14,920
They were not working together
as well as they could have.

1205
01:32:14,920 --> 01:32:18,119
In fact, they even got into a bit
of a confrontation during the match.

1206
01:32:19,840 --> 01:32:22,000
So, you know, it was...

1207
01:32:22,640 --> 01:32:25,600
We loved to see that,
from our point of view.

1208
01:32:30,640 --> 01:32:33,520
He and Ţiriac were bickering
a lot during the doubles.

1209
01:32:33,920 --> 01:32:37,840
So Smith and Erik van Dillen, the US,
beat them very comfortably.

1210
01:32:38,159 --> 01:32:42,479
And Smith won the decisive match
the last day, beating Ţiriac 6-0 in 5th,

1211
01:32:42,479 --> 01:32:44,880
so Năstase's match
with Tom Gorman was meaningless.

1212
01:32:48,079 --> 01:32:52,840
{\an8}We, the ball boys...
I was a ball boy in that final.

1213
01:32:53,279 --> 01:32:56,640
It was obvious
Ţiriac couldn't beat Stan Smith.

1214
01:32:57,079 --> 01:32:58,720
He actually told me:

1215
01:32:58,720 --> 01:33:02,720
"Throw that ball wide,
can't you see I'm beat?"

1216
01:33:03,439 --> 01:33:06,439
I realised he wanted me
to throw the ball sideways,

1217
01:33:06,439 --> 01:33:12,479
so another ball boy would pick it up,
giving him time to catch his breath.

1218
01:33:13,239 --> 01:33:17,079
Even with the doubles going
the other way, Romania might have won.

1219
01:33:18,279 --> 01:33:22,359
Looking back it was a sad occasion for
Năstase that he didn't perform his best

1220
01:33:22,840 --> 01:33:24,439
on the surface that suited him

1221
01:33:24,439 --> 01:33:27,239
in front of the fans
that were rooting so hard for him.

1222
01:33:27,239 --> 01:33:29,800
Because Ţiriac did beat
Gorman the first day.

1223
01:34:00,760 --> 01:34:04,039
I was 33 when we played in Bucharest.

1224
01:34:04,039 --> 01:34:05,920
If I hadn't played
for five hours in the first day,

1225
01:34:06,239 --> 01:34:11,800
I might have had some fuel left
that third day, for the fifth set,

1226
01:34:12,319 --> 01:34:13,520
in the singles.

1227
01:34:13,960 --> 01:34:16,039
The doubles went south for us.

1228
01:34:16,039 --> 01:34:20,119
It was one of my greatest failures.

1229
01:34:20,119 --> 01:34:22,159
He can't even understand it.

1230
01:34:22,920 --> 01:34:24,439
I mean it.

1231
01:34:24,840 --> 01:34:29,239
He's won all those Grand Slams,
he's World Champion Ilie Năstase.

1232
01:34:29,840 --> 01:34:30,960
But to me...

1233
01:34:32,000 --> 01:34:34,760
Having come from hockey,
which is a team sport.

1234
01:34:35,119 --> 01:34:37,279
I had seen a thing or two.

1235
01:34:37,880 --> 01:34:42,000
You get a hockey stick to the face,
you defend, stuff like that.

1236
01:34:42,479 --> 01:34:46,159
But he was such an individualist.

1237
01:34:47,359 --> 01:34:49,560
- He was so invested--
- I'm jumping!

1238
01:34:49,560 --> 01:34:52,560
But he was a great artist.
There you have it.

1239
01:34:53,720 --> 01:34:57,079
Dear watchers, we have
reached the end of our programme.

1240
01:34:57,439 --> 01:35:00,600
Before I take my leave, though,

1241
01:35:01,239 --> 01:35:05,800
I wish swift progress to those
who have followed our adventure

1242
01:35:05,800 --> 01:35:08,279
and hope that, in the coming years,

1243
01:35:08,680 --> 01:35:11,119
one of them will win the Grand Slam,

1244
01:35:11,119 --> 01:35:14,279
while others will form
a new Davis Cup team.

1245
01:35:14,279 --> 01:35:17,359
One that might bring home the Cup.

1246
01:35:17,720 --> 01:35:19,640
Good luck to all!

1247
01:35:40,840 --> 01:35:43,239
Năstase was pure talent.

1248
01:35:43,760 --> 01:35:47,760
I believe that Ilie,
with his way of being,

1249
01:35:49,119 --> 01:35:53,359
poetic, relaxed,
treating tennis like a game,

1250
01:35:53,359 --> 01:35:56,960
but still wanting to play it as an art,

1251
01:35:56,960 --> 01:36:01,119
Ilie wanted to deliver a show every time.

1252
01:36:02,399 --> 01:36:04,760
He would say It's just a game.

1253
01:36:04,760 --> 01:36:07,479
He even believed this
during the Davis Cup finals.

1254
01:36:07,840 --> 01:36:10,760
He believed it during those
Wimbledon finals he lost.

1255
01:36:11,199 --> 01:36:13,159
{\an8}To him, it's just a game.

1256
01:36:14,720 --> 01:36:17,640
Look, Ilie Năstase
will always be Ilie Năstase.

1257
01:36:18,560 --> 01:36:21,560
{\an8}Today when you meet him
similar to 50 years ago.

1258
01:36:21,560 --> 01:36:27,600
{\an8}I'm sure he has moments of regret,
I'm sure with the talent he had, you know,

1259
01:36:27,600 --> 01:36:29,840
he should have been No. 1 for a long time,

1260
01:36:29,840 --> 01:36:33,399
but he just couldn't help himself,
he didn't have the discipline,

1261
01:36:33,399 --> 01:36:34,920
didn't have the concentration.

1262
01:36:35,239 --> 01:36:38,039
{\an8}I always thought he could have
done a little bit more,

1263
01:36:38,039 --> 01:36:41,319
{\an8}but maybe if he did that
he wouldn't have been as natural,

1264
01:36:41,840 --> 01:36:44,600
so there's a bit of a give-and-take.

1265
01:36:44,600 --> 01:36:46,159
I remember

1266
01:36:46,880 --> 01:36:49,960
{\an8}looking at him and saying
"OK, he's playing."

1267
01:36:50,560 --> 01:36:52,159
The others were working.

1268
01:36:52,760 --> 01:36:56,680
And he was the first
that was actually playing the game.

1269
01:36:57,880 --> 01:37:00,439
When you are the best player in the world
and you're a little bit crazy,

1270
01:37:00,439 --> 01:37:02,000
it becomes very inspiring,

1271
01:37:02,399 --> 01:37:06,319
{\an8}but more than that there was
the simplicity that he played tennis with,

1272
01:37:06,319 --> 01:37:09,359
{\an8}the feel that he had
that was just unbelievable.

1273
01:37:12,359 --> 01:37:15,920
The thing was, every time he played,
the courts were full.

1274
01:37:16,239 --> 01:37:20,159
Because sometimes people
want more than just tennis.

1275
01:37:22,039 --> 01:37:26,720
{\an8}And Ilie was able to give
that little bit more to the people.

1276
01:37:28,159 --> 01:37:30,079
He just touches
the hearts and minds of people.

1277
01:37:31,279 --> 01:37:32,720
He just does.

1278
01:37:35,880 --> 01:37:41,520
{\an8}He was Romanian;
he stayed in our hearts and minds,

1279
01:37:41,520 --> 01:37:43,880
{\an8}because he made us happy.

1280
01:37:44,359 --> 01:37:49,279
He is one of the great people who
taught me to aim at being the best.

1281
01:37:50,720 --> 01:37:54,119
{\an8}You'd never know
what he was thinking, what he was doing.

1282
01:37:54,119 --> 01:37:59,079
{\an8}That's why Ilie was
a very difficult opponent to play against.

1283
01:37:59,399 --> 01:38:02,119
But Ilie brought
something new to the sport.

1284
01:38:02,760 --> 01:38:05,279
He was the fresh thing in tennis.

1285
01:38:05,680 --> 01:38:07,279
He made tennis

1286
01:38:08,119 --> 01:38:09,960
what it is today.

1287
01:38:13,880 --> 01:38:15,720
Forget about the record.

1288
01:38:15,720 --> 01:38:18,880
He has his records, he's won his
tournaments, a couple of Grand Slams.

1289
01:38:18,880 --> 01:38:20,920
{\an8}That's all good, that's all fine.

1290
01:38:20,920 --> 01:38:24,479
{\an8}But what he did, in my opinion,
to help build the game

1291
01:38:25,000 --> 01:38:28,279
and to create the excitement,
the electricity, the charisma,

1292
01:38:29,239 --> 01:38:31,920
any other adjectives
I can figure out, he did it.

1293
01:38:32,640 --> 01:38:34,760
Năstase was hard to match.

1294
01:38:35,520 --> 01:38:37,560
The inside of Năstase was...

1295
01:38:38,079 --> 01:38:41,720
People used to say he had no lungs,
just two hearts.

1296
01:38:42,079 --> 01:38:45,479
Very generous and so on,
but a lunatic.

1297
01:38:48,600 --> 01:38:53,199
Do you ever think of being afraid
of growing old, or death?

1298
01:38:53,520 --> 01:38:56,520
Sometimes I'll think about death, but...

1299
01:38:57,479 --> 01:39:01,079
I don't see myself dead,
dying, you know?

1300
01:39:01,079 --> 01:39:04,119
I just see myself living forever.

1301
01:39:09,079 --> 01:39:14,359
When you play, you tell yourself
I have to win, it's what I'm here for.

1302
01:39:14,800 --> 01:39:19,199
But I never thought of it
in a calculated way,

1303
01:39:19,800 --> 01:39:21,199
being No. 1.

1304
01:39:21,760 --> 01:39:22,680
It just happened.

1305
01:39:23,680 --> 01:39:25,079
That's how it was.

1306
01:39:35,039 --> 01:39:38,800
His style is not perfect,
but each shot is an innovation,

1307
01:39:38,800 --> 01:39:41,359
an impulse that confuses the opponent.

1308
01:39:41,359 --> 01:39:43,880
He appears
where he couldn't logically be,

1309
01:39:44,239 --> 01:39:47,840
he sends the ball
where it couldn't logically go.

1310
01:39:48,199 --> 01:39:50,840
Has he invented surrealist tennis?

1311
01:39:54,279 --> 01:39:59,199
He is wrongly called shallow:
he loves tennis too much to neglect it.

1312
01:40:58,000 --> 01:41:02,920
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