Rod Laver turns 82
In a rather pleasing coincidence, Rod Laver was born on August 9—one day after Roger Federer’s birthday. Add to this that another tennis great, Pete Sampras, was born on August 12.
Laver, of course, is the elder of this titanic trio, the man the other two have long revered for everything from his game to his grace. As much as Federer, Sampras and the entire world wish to honor Laver turning 82, he himself this year has commenced another celebration. True to the collaborative spirit of Laver’s homeland, this one’s a team effort.
Late 2019 marked the publication of a new book authored by Laver. His story is only a small part of it. Laver’s tale is called “The Golden Era: The Extraordinary Two Decades When Australians Ruled the Tennis World.” Written with the assistance of Australian journalist Larry Writer (yes, that’s really his name), the book is an in-depth chronicle of 1950-’75, the years when Australian tennis ruled the world.
“This was our story, our nation’s story,” Laver told me, “and I wanted to tell it all. These people are all my friends and many of them have been my rivals. It was fun to dig into all this incredible history and bring it to life once again.”
