‘Just Blurted It Out’ – Billie Jean King Lays Bare Her Bold Move That Eventually Led to a Major Women’s Tennis Revolution

Published 10/19/2023, 7:36 AM EDT

From being a part of 20 Wimbledon titles to being awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009, Billie Jean King has transgressed the heights of achievements. But back in 1966, her story was just getting started. There is no doubt that King was born to be a success in the world of tennis. But little did she know that in the near future, she would revolutionize women’s tennis. Returning to the present moment, King now attributes the success of women’s tennis to a daring move that she made in 1972.

Being a powerful feminist, Billie Jean King always had women’s best interests in her heart. In 1973, she defeated Bobby Riggs in the famous Battle of the Sexes match. Not only did King stand for women’s rights in tennis, she later went on to be the founder of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA). In an exclusive Apple podcast – Laughter Permitted with Julie Foudy, King revisits those days and reveals one of her impulsive decisions that went on to change everything.

It was tough, but Billie Jean King stood her ground

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The present success of women’s tennis would not have been possible without the efforts of Billie Jean King. However, King’s beliefs and ideals helped her make crucial decisions accurately. During the second year of women’s professional tennis, something unexpected happened as the USTA started another tour simultaneously. Having two tours, the top players needed to be divided and King was not okay with it.

The division of the best women would have been harmful to their future development, and Billie Jean King understood this right from the onset. Later, when the media arrived to talk about the new tour, King was infuriated, she said, “I was getting very steamed up inside, trying to be very polite though.”

In a moment of frustration, as King could not take it anymore, she made a bold choice. King said, “I just blurted it out, I went, we are not gonna be here next year.” It was only after she said this to the media that she realized she hadn’t talked to her fellow women about it.

Billie Jean King thought that she had made a huge mistake. However, King stood her ground, she said “Never, ever, ever, let the top players divide, okay, they have to be together”. King had acted impulsively, but because her motivations were right, the women in her team accepted King’s decision without a second thought.

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Billie Jean King believed in the unity of women

Billie Jean King realized that her decision could be a huge mistake, but it wasn’t. Being a powerful feminist, King understood the core needs of the women in her time. Although from a place of anger, King’s words to the media emerged from the collective sentiment of women tennis players. King said, “You know, it’s about we, it’s not about I.” They all understood, and they all moved on.

The attitude of looking out for her fellow teammates helped Billie Jean King truly resonate with the situation they were in. Today, King is the rightful owner of all the respect, fame, and money that she has, and it all started because of her being true to herself. The platform that King laid down for the future women tennis players will always remind us of her belief in women as a whole.

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Written by:

Shudh Mukherjee is a Tennis Editor at EssentiallySports. With a Master’s degree in English Literature, he looks to create meaningful content through extensive research. Being a sportsman and a fitness enthusiast, it was Nadal's resilience and perseverance that attracted him to tennis.

Edited by:

Aishwary Gaonkar

‘Just Blurted It Out’ – Billie Jean King Lays Bare Her Bold Move That Eventually Led to a Major Women’s Tennis Revolution

It was tough, but Billie Jean King stood her ground

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Billie Jean King believed in the unity of women