June 22, 1981 – There are legendary moments in sports history captured on video and then there are iconic ones that are played so much that they are forever embedded into the human brain. It happened this day at the Wimbledon where American tennis star John McEnroe set the prim and proper English tourney on its ear when he had his infamous tirade of ‘You cannot be serious’ rant in 1st round win over Tom Gullikson.
McEnroe was perturbed with a Wimbledon umpire’s line call during the match, with which he obviously disagreed with. McEnroe went on with a few more lines directed at the Ump, but with the politeness of the British umpire Edward James, eventually responded by politely announcing: “I’m going to award a point against you, Mr. McEnroe.”
The line, “You Cannot be serious,” was made famous that day and ended up being the title of a book the tennis great would write years later.
To find more great daily sports history make sure to check out the Sports Jersey Dispatch and Pigskin Dispatch.
More From Sports History Network
Year of the Rocket: Toronto Argonaut History From 1991
It was 1991, and Raghib “Rocket” Ismail was about to be the #1 overall
Unraveling Legends: A Historical Review of the NFL’s Greatest Quarterbacks
The National Football League (NFL) has been a cornerstone of American sports culture since
Minnesota’s Most Winnable Super Bowl (IX)
Every pro football fan knows that the Minnesota Vikings went to four Super Bowls
Boxing Titles: Close But No Cigar
In this episode, I am going to be focusing on several boxers who had
Defying Destiny: The Most Miraculous League Title Wins in Soccer History
A domestic league championship is often called the truest test in soccer. Unlike the
Super Bowl XXII (Broncos vs. Redskins): An Ultimate Recount of the Game
Today we have Super Bowl XXII, which was held on January 31, 1988, between
1971 Dallas Cowboys: Their First Lombardi Victory
Year after year my brother and I waited for our favorite team, the Dallas
Lenny Sachs: Basketball Hall of Famer’s Forgotten NFL Record
Back in the very early days of the National Football League, many of the