When Terrorism and Counterterrorism Clash: The War on Terror and ...

Chapter 1

The Challenge of Global Terrorism

Victory in war is not repetitious, but adapts its form endlessly. The ability to gain victory by changing and adapting according to the opponent is called genius.

—Sun Tzu

The 31-year-old Arthur Ashe was a long shot when he walked onto the court for the Wimbledon final against Jimmy Connors in 1975. Connors, with his driving ground strokes, was clearly the more powerful player. His aggression had been described as being like Hemingway’s. As one commentator put it, “You see the flash, then you hear the crack and at last the shell comes.” Ashe was nimble and quick and said to play tennis like chess, but no one expected him to win. This, after all, was his 11th Wimbledon. In almost no time, however, Ashe took control and made everything as difficult as possible for Connors. He was patient. He meditated between points.He played to the crowd. Then, as Gray described it, he “lobbed, dinked, teased, passed, out-rallied and frustrated the ‘odds-on favorite.’”¹ In the end, he beat the reigning champion by focusing on an indirect strategy that completely undercut his opponent’s power.