‘My Blood Pressure Was Probably Going Up’- Smitten by Chris Evert, Ex-husband Lets Slip His First-Date Blunder Back in 1978

It is rightly said that sometimes, love can be found in even the most unexpected places. The same thing happened with Chris Evert and her former husband John Lloyd. Known for their legendary performances on the tennis courts, the two stars, back in 1978, were about to hit a different kind of court, their first date.

Slightly hesitant at the initial stage, Lloyd asked Evert out on a date. Evert was a very high-profile tennis player at that moment, and Lloyd unknowingly pulled off a very bold move that he eventually thought was not at all a good idea.

The risky first date move that John Lloyd took while asking Chris Evert out on a date

In 1978, tennis player John Lloyd faced a great dilemma when planning a first date with the tennis legend Chris Evert. Despite Evert being a tennis champion, Lloyd, who was completely clueless about her dating history, followed advice from Ingrid Bentzer. ‘John, why don’t you go up and have a chat with Chrissie?’ said Ingrid which then left Lloyd completely baffled.

‘Why would I do that? She doesn’t know me,’ said Lloyd who was completely confused. However, encouraged by Ingrid, Lloyd approached Evert at Wimbledon and, unaware of her prestigious career, suggested a date on the spot. However, he added that had he known only a little about Evert’s career, he would not have approached her at all. Things went perfectly well and she agreed to the date.

Little did he know the rarity of Chrissie saying ‘yes’ to a date during a major tournament. However, he also added that his heartbeat and blood pressure surged up as he started to have a chat with her. “She was trying to fix me up. My heartbeat, my blood pressure, everything was probably going up as I sauntered over, trying to maintain my outward cool,” said Lloyd.

However, it was a time when the engagement between Chris Evert and Jimmy Connors was just called off. Despite this, they still used to be in constant touch with each other. But one thing was clear for Lloyd, if he wanted things to turn out well, he would have to be very low-key with Evert. However, choosing Tramp was exactly not a good start to keeping things lowkey.

Also read: ‘Went Out There for War’ – Martina Navratilova’s Former Coach Detailed the Unwavering Mindset of Chris Evert on a Tennis Court

Without knowing the need for secrecy, Lloyd risked it all by choosing Tramp, a popular UK nightclub for their date. Despite the risky choice, the couple managed to keep things quiet. Thus, John Lloyd faced a tough task as he had to approach Chris Evert for a date. Despite not being aware of her career, it was a very tough call for him to make.

While things started to turn out well between them, choosing Tramp as their first date meeting place turned out to be the exact opposite of what they had eventually thought of!

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