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Jimmy Connors and Chris Evert were one of the most adored couples back in the day. They had every tennis fan’s heart, as it was rare to see the top players of the WTA and ATP involved in a romantic relationship. However, the cost of adoration was serious surveillance. Because fans were so into their relationship, the media preyed on their every move. In fact, they even made a show out of their breakup.

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The rumors ran wild, and people made their assumptions. People believed they ended their relationship on a bad note. However, Connors later revealed there were no ill feelings between him and Evert.

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Connors about how he and Chris Evert behaved post their break up

The eight-time Grand Slam champion in his autobiography, ‘The Outsider’, opened up about the aftermath of his breakup. He at first wrote about the Wimbledon incident and pointed out how taking his date to Evert’s finals match against Billie Jean King didn’t affect her game. “If Chrissie had been upset with me for taking Susan to Wimbledon, do you think a few months later we would have been found sitting very publicly with each other making a date?”

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Thereafter, he explained what their relationship was like post their breakup. “OK, so it was not exactly a romantic date; this was on a staged TV show, where Chrissie asked me to play mixed doubles with her against Billie Jean and Marty Riessen for a CBS special called Love Doubles.”

“I even gave Chrissie a kiss on the cheek when I said yes. Granted, it was pretty cheesy, but it showed that we were still friends and we had moved on,” he added. Connors and Evert were a couple in the early 70s and at the same time were dominating the sport. In fact, they performed a couple’s sweep at Wimbledon in 1974.

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Read more: ‘Being Gay Has Hurt Her’- Chris Evert’s Brutally Honest Admission Once About Rival Martina Navratilova’s Sexuality

Though things went south, they had different views over a matter. The soon-to-be married couple decided to break ties when Connors wanted to pursue the pregnancy and Evert wanted an abortion. They called off their wedding in 1975.

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Connors and Evert’s love life post break up

While the 18 times Grand Slam champion went through three failed marriages, Connors found his soulmate in Patti McGuire. Connors tied the knot with the American nude model in the year 1979 and currently has two children, Brett Connors and Aubree Connors.

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Watch this story: Chris Evert says tennis players like Maria Sharapova and Eugenie Bouchard will always get attention because they are good looking

Coming back to Evert. The seven times French Open champion at first married John Lloyd, a fellow tennis professional. Thereafter, she exchanged vows with Alpine ski racer Andy Mill and broke up around 18 years-long marriage with him to be with Greg Norman. Though her relationship with the Australian golfer also faced the same fate. In the span of months, they mutually decided to walk out of that union.

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Mahima Verma

1,034 Articles

Mahima Verma is a Tennis writer for EssentiallySports. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Hotel Management from IHM Mumbai. A sports enthusiast, particularly Tennis since her childhood, Mahima believes that she is fortunate enough to witness the legends like Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Serena Williams play. Mahima is also an artistic person who enjoys painting in her free time. When not engrossed in sports, one can also find her involved in gardening, a hobby she picked up from her father early in life.

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