5 love affairs that began on the tennis court

#4 Jimmy Connors and Chris Evert

Connors and Evert both won Wimbledon in 1974

Evert is widely considered one of the greatest players in the history of women’s tennis. The former No. 1 won 18 Grand Slam titles in an illustrious career that saw her end seven years between 1974 and 1981 as the world’s top-ranked player, missing out only in 1979.

Of the 56 Grand Slams Evert played in her career, she managed at least a semifinal in 52, and made 34 finals - that last number is more than any player in the history of the game – either male or female.

Connors is himself considered among the greatest in the game. The American held the year-end No. 1 ranking for 160 consecutive weeks, a record at the time, and spent 16 years in the top 10 – another Open era record to his name.

He played for an unprecedented 24 years – longer than any other player in the Open Era, and continues to hold three Open Era records. He is the only man to hold over 100 singles titles (with 109), has played 1,532 matches and won 1,254 of those.

The famously influential and foul-tempered Connors won the singles title at Wimbledon in 1974, with Evert winning the women’s. The two had begun dating two years prior, having met at Wimbledon when Evert was 17 and Connors 19. They were already engaged by the time they won their respective titles, even dancing to the song “The One that I Marry” at the champions’ dinner.

Unfortunately, their romance did not last long, and the pair called off their engagement later that same year.

Connors has gone on to discuss details of the former couple’s personal life in the media in recent years, while Evert has chosen to maintain a silence over the issues. She has since been married to and divorced from former British No. 1 John Lloyd and Australian champion golfer Greg Norman.

Evert now runs her own tennis academies in Florida.