One of the greatest American male tennis players of all time, Jimmy Connors, has often grabbed plenty of headlines in the past. Notably, his confession regarding his relationship with legendary American tennis star Chris Evert created many controversies.

Moreover, he never showed a nice guy image while playing tennis, as well as outside the tennis court. Back in 1991, he mocked his fellow American tennis player Pete Sampras for losing at the US Open.

Jimmy Connors mocked Pete Sampras for feeling relieved after losing at the US Open

During the 1991 US Open, 8-time Grand Slam Champion Jimmy Connors slammed young American tennis star Pete Sampras for feeling relieved after losing in the quarter-finals. Sampras felt some ‘bag of bricks’ had just been lifted from his shoulders.

After hearing that, Connors said, “What? Don’t tell me that! That’s the biggest crock of dump! Being the U.S. Open champion is what I’ve lived for. If these guys are relieved at losing, something is wrong with the game—and wrong with them.”

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Notably, Sampras won the US Open title in the previous year in 1990. And in 1991, he lost to another American legend Jim Courier in the quarters.

Meanwhile, Connors grabbed all the headlines for all the good reasons as he reached the semi-final of the 1991 US Open at the age of 39. Even though Stefan Edberg won the title, many praised Connors for playing extraordinary tennis at 39.

Connors’ record as a professional tennis player

Since starting his career in the early 70s, Connor showed great technique and quality on the tennis court. In 1974, he had a fantastic year in terms of tennis, as he won three Grand Slam titles, including Wimbledon, Australian Open, and the US Open.

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Soon he became the world no.1 and remained in that position for 160 consecutive weeks. Moreover, he won the most singles titles in the history of men’s tennis, i.e. 109. After him, Swiss legend Roger Federer won the most number of titles with 103.

After winning his fifth US Open title in 1983, Connors was unable to win a single Grand Slam title; due to a  series of injuries, particularly the left wrist injury, which hampered his career in the end. However, reaching the 1991 US Open semi-final at the age of 39 was one of his greatest achievements in tennis.

Is Connors the greatest American male tennis player? Let us know in the comments.