On October 9, 1989, Chris Evert played her last professional match in the Fed Cup final to call off her illustrious tennis career on a winning note. However, retirement was the toughest time for the 18-time Grand Slam champion as her whole life revolved around the sport. Despite the challenges brought on by the change, having a supportive partner enabled the American tennis legend to get through the most challenging time of her life.

The ‘Ice Maiden’ retired at the age of 34. And throughout her amazing time on the tennis court, she was never ranked lower than fourth as a singles player. Understandably, the former world no.1 was mentally drained from playing continuous tennis for close to a couple of decades.

Chris Evert on how her ex-husband became her savior 

Evert sat down for an interview with Charlie Rose that took place back in 1994, 5 years after the American tennis player called off her career. The broadcaster asked the former world number one in the interview how it felt to leave everything behind, and enter retirement.

She said, “I don’t know what I would have done. Because that was my family. My family was the tennis tour, and Andy was like, he was almost a savior, he came along and then I sort of said, shoo, now I have something to go to. Because you always, when you retire and leave something, you like to go to something, you know, that’s you know.” 

READ MORE – ‘It Was Really Heart-Breaking’ – Chris Evert’s Ex-husband Looks Back at His Traumatic Marriage as He Delivers a Philosophical Statement

The tennis legend believed that having the former athlete by her side was vital after retirement, as he helped her tackle loneliness and bring a sense of purpose. However, there was a time when the 18-time Grand Slam champion also talked about the advantages of retirement after playing tennis for such a long time. 

Evert on her retirement rejuvenation 

In an old interview, the former world number one opened up about how every morning felt like a vacation after her retirement. She also talked about how she never realized the amount of pressure building up when she was an athlete. 

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Evert particularly opened up about how everything felt different after having a family. One day you are traveling the world as a star, and the next day, you are a stay-at-home mother. However, Evert overcame that phase successfully and now leads her life as a renowned pundit, providing her expert opinion predominantly during the Grand Slams.