"I went into a world that was way out of my league, you marry someone who’s as famous as that, you have to swallow your ego" - John Lloyd on his unsuccessful marriage to Chris Evert

Former British No. 1 John Lloyd has opened up on his unsuccessful marriage with Chris Evert. The Brit married the legendary American player in 1979 but the pair separated eight years later in 1987. Lloyd admitted that he went into a "world that was way out of his league" and could not handle the razzmatazz that came his way.

The former Great Britain Davis Cup captain revealed that it was not easy for him to deal with the off-field adulation and praise that the 18-time Grand Slam champion Evert received.

Evert is regarded as one of the best women's tennis players of all time and was always under the media spotlight during her glorious career.

"I went into a world that was way out of my league. I think I had a little bit of preparation, but I wasn’t the same as being married to a world star who was famous beyond belief," John Lloyd told Tennis365.com.

"You don’t think of it at the time and then you go to places. When you marry someone who’s as famous as that, you have to swallow your ego and leave it a door, the front door. There were times when I was referred to Mr. Evert, and all that sort of stuff," he added.

However, Lloyd also admitted that he enjoyed the perks of being the British No.1 and getting recognition from people given that he was a renowned tennis player during his heyday himself. The 67-year-old went on to add that he liked it when he was given special treatment because of his and Chris Evert's stardom.

“I’m pretty easy going with that stuff. Rather than get confrontational about it, I just sort of let it roll off the back, you know, got a fair amount of celebrity as British No 1. English style, British style should I say. So on a certain scale, I was sort of used to it a bit. People would recognise me, not all the time, but at restaurants, and so on, if you went out, and all that sort of stuff," Lloyd continued.

"There were there was some tremendous advantages of it. Don’t get me wrong, and there was some wonderful perks that you got. You know, being shown the best tables in restaurants and getting reservations and any shows you want to see. And I met people that I didn’t dream of meeting and a lot of them were through her, obviously, and there were some bad things as well,” he stated.

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John Lloyd said that it could have been a different story if he had married Chris Evert 10 years later as they were too young when they took their vows of marriage. He believes it was not easy to keep the relationship intact with Chris Evert as both of them had hectic schedules traveling on the tour.

“Overall, I wouldn’t change it,” he added. “I think if we were married 10 years later, I think we might have had a shot, but we were both too young.

“You are on the road a lot as a tennis player. For Chris and I, we were on different circuits, away from the Slam events and spending time apart is not a natural thing. I think that’s half the reason it fell away by the wayside.

"It's going to be crazy" - Chris Evert on Serena Williams' swansong at US Open

Former World No. 1 Serena Williams recently confirmed that she is set to retire from the sport, presumably after the 2022 US Open. Commenting on Williams' last Major tournament, Chris Evert said that it is going to be 'crazy', as every tennis fan will want to see the legendary player in action for one final time.

Chris Evert said in an interview with Women's Wair Daily, "It’s going to be crazy. Every fan will want a ticket to watch Serena, thinking it’s her last match. She is not vintage Serena, she is 40 years old and starting to lose to players she used to beat. I don’t know how long she will last in the tournament, so it will be a crazy first week of people trying to get their last glimpse."

Serena Williams lost to reigning US Open champion Emma Raducanu in the opening round of the Cincinnati Masters in straight sets on Wednesday. Her only win in four matches this year came against Nuria Parrizas-Diaz in the first round of the Canadian Open last week.