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A TERRIBLE SPLENDOR
Three Extraordinary Men, a World Poised for War, and the Greatest Tennis Match Ever Played
The fascinating story of the greatest tennis match ever played between the dominant Don Budge and the seductively handsome Baron Gottfried von Cramm, and the book behind the upcoming movie "Break", directed by Daniel Brühl.
This deciding 1937 Davis Cup match, played on the hallowed grounds of Wimbledon, was a battle of titans: the world's number one tennis player against the number two; America against Germany; democracy against fascism. For five superhuman sets, the duo's brilliant shotmaking kept the Centre Court crowd - and the world - spellbound.
The match's significance extended well beyond the immaculate grass courts of Wimbledon. Against the backdrop of the Great Depression and the brink of World War II, one man played for the pride of his country while the other played for his life: Budge, the humble hard-working American who would soon become the first to win all four Grand Slam titles in the same year, vied to keep the Davis Cup out of the hands of the Nazi regime. On the other side of the net, the immensely popular and elegant von Cramm fought Budge point for point knowing that a loss might precipitate his descent into the living hell being constructed behind barbed wire back home.
Born into an aristocratic family, von Cramm was admired for his devastating good looks as well as his unparalleled sportsmanship. But he harbored a dark secret, one that put him under increasing Gestapo surveillance. And his situation was made even more perilous by his refusal to join the Nazi Party or defend Hitler. Desperately relying on his athletic achievements and the global spotlight to keep him out of the Gestapo's clutches, his strategy was to keep traveling and keep winning. A Davis Cup victory would make him the toast of Germany. A loss might be catastrophic.
Marshall Jon Fisher has written for The Atlantic Monthly on topics ranging from wooden tennis rackets to Internet fraud, and has also written for Harper's and Discover, among other magazines. His essay "Memoria ex Machina" appeared in Best American Essays 2003. He is the coauthor (with his father David E. Fisher) of TUBE: THE INVENTION OF TELEVISION and STRANGERS IN THE NIGHT: A BRIEF HISTORY OF LIFE ON OTHER WORLDS.
The match's significance extended well beyond the immaculate grass courts of Wimbledon. Against the backdrop of the Great Depression and the brink of World War II, one man played for the pride of his country while the other played for his life: Budge, the humble hard-working American who would soon become the first to win all four Grand Slam titles in the same year, vied to keep the Davis Cup out of the hands of the Nazi regime. On the other side of the net, the immensely popular and elegant von Cramm fought Budge point for point knowing that a loss might precipitate his descent into the living hell being constructed behind barbed wire back home.
Born into an aristocratic family, von Cramm was admired for his devastating good looks as well as his unparalleled sportsmanship. But he harbored a dark secret, one that put him under increasing Gestapo surveillance. And his situation was made even more perilous by his refusal to join the Nazi Party or defend Hitler. Desperately relying on his athletic achievements and the global spotlight to keep him out of the Gestapo's clutches, his strategy was to keep traveling and keep winning. A Davis Cup victory would make him the toast of Germany. A loss might be catastrophic.
Marshall Jon Fisher has written for The Atlantic Monthly on topics ranging from wooden tennis rackets to Internet fraud, and has also written for Harper's and Discover, among other magazines. His essay "Memoria ex Machina" appeared in Best American Essays 2003. He is the coauthor (with his father David E. Fisher) of TUBE: THE INVENTION OF TELEVISION and STRANGERS IN THE NIGHT: A BRIEF HISTORY OF LIFE ON OTHER WORLDS.
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Published 2025-11-04 by Crown |