Together they formed one of the most prolific doubles teams in tennis history. Now, longtime friends and tennis partners John McEnroe and Peter Fleming are again teaming up – this time in an effort to boost the sport they love, as Fleming was today named an Associate Academy Director at the John McEnroe Tennis Academy.
McEnroe and Fleming will officially kick off this re-constituting of their partnership with a kids clinic at the new Sportime Lake Isle in Eastchester, New York on Sunday August 26th at noon. Lake Isle will be one of two new annexes for the JMTA, with the other being in Bethpage, New York.
Fleming, once the No. 1 doubles and No. 8 singles player in the world, will be based out of the JMTA’s flagship Randall’s Island and Lake Isle locations. He will maintain a presence at both clubs from September through May.
“Peter and I have known each other since the early 1970s,” said McEnroe, “and probably no one on the planet knows better than Peter about my approach to the game – both on and off court – and how I would like to see the game played, kids train, and parents to act. It’s a perfect fit.”
“I am very excited to be able to work formally again with John and the staff at JMTA,” Fleming said. “I have talked with John for years about his dream of exposing the game to a new generation of kids and using a system he believes in to build a new group of dedicated players and lifelong fans of the game, and anything I can do to help him I will.”
Fleming paired with McEnroe to win 57 doubles titles, notably Wimbledon four times (1979, 1981, 1983, 1984) and the US Open three times (1979, 1981, 1983). The duo also won seven straight Masters titles from 1978-84, never losing a match at Madison Square Garden in New York. The pair also earned four ATP Doubles Team of the Year honors (1979, 1981, 1983, 1984).
The hard-hitting right hander was a perfect complement to McEnroe, as the pair reached 68 doubles finals and compiled a 351-42 record. In Davis Cup play, they recorded a stellar 14-1 mark, winning three titles (1979, 1981, 1982).
In addition to his new duties at the JMTA, which will focus on working with top players privately and in group sessions, Fleming will continue as a standout commentator for Sky TV.
Peter joins a staff that now includes fellow Associate Academy Director and New Jersey native, Fritz Buehning, a former world top 20 player who made a run to the U.S. Open doubles final in 1981]only to run into Fleming/McEnroe at their peak. “With Fritz and Peter on a staff led by Academy Director, Lawrence Kleger, and with Johnny Mac himself inspiring the troops, JMTA is becoming what we envisioned it would be – the best academy in the world,” comments Sportime Chief Executive Officer Claude Okin. “We are ready to train the next generation the great American players at JMTA.”