There was a time in the 1970s when Chris Evert and Jimmy Connors, two tennis legends, were referred to as the ‘Golden Couple’. There was a time they both even planned to get married, but called it off abruptly. When Connors finally released his own book, almost 40 years later, the real reason came to light.

The 18-time Grand Slam champion had a very difficult love life. After her failed relationship, she got married thrice, but luck was not on her side, as all three ended in a divorce. However, she has three sons from her second marriage with Andy Mill, which she is grateful for in the end.

Chris Evert talked about her past relationship

In 1997, the former world number one was asked about her situation with Connors after they had ended their relationship without revealing the reasons, in an interview.

Evert talked about the mutual respect that she shared with the former tennis star and his wife. She said, “Yeah, we also had children at the same time, and we’re still friends. Even Jimmy and Patty and I get along.”

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Further, she said that she has never been upset with anyone for a long time, and it was just a phase or a small period. She said, “That’s one thing about my life. There’s not one person in this world that I hate. And even if I’m really p__- off at somebody, I only feel that way for a short time.”

End of the ‘Golden Couple’

When Chris Evert and Jimmy Connors broke up, most of their fanbase and the media were left in the dark regarding the reason behind their split. It only came to light when Connors released his memoir in 2013. He mentioned in his memoir, ‘The Outsider’, that the 18-time Grand Slam champion had an abortion that he didn’t agree with. It was cited by Connors as a major reason behind breaking up with the 18-time Grand Slam champion. 

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After the release of Connors’ memoir, Evert criticized him for including a personal and painful moment from their relationship without her permission. She said in a statement to Reuters, “In his book, Jimmy Connors has written about a time in our relationship that was very personal and emotionally painful…I am extremely disappointed that he used the book to misrepresent a private matter that took place 40 years ago and made it public, without my knowledge.”

Since the release of his memoir, Connors has been heavily criticized for revealing Evert’s extremely personal decision to the eyes of the public without her consent.