Chris Evert

Born on: December 21, 1954

Born in: Fort Lauderdale, Florida, US

Nationality: American

Career: Tennis Player

Chris Evert is a former World No.1 American professional tennis player. The star player won 18 Grand Slam singles titles, including a record 7 at the French Open. She was ranked No. 1 female singles player for seven years. Her career’s win - loss record in singles matches of 1,309-146 is the best by any professional player in tennis history. She has been named as the third best female player of the 20th century, after Steffi Graf and Martina Navratilova. Evert also won 3 Grand Slam titles in women's doubles.

Evert was born as Christine Marie Evert on 21^st December 1954, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Her mother was Colette Thompson, while her father was Jimmy Evert, a professional tennis coach. Chris had tennis in her family. She, along with her sister Jeanne Evert, became professional tennis players, while her brother Jack Evert attended Auburn University, in Auburn, Alabama, on a full athletic scholarship for intercollegiate tennis. She started taking tennis lessons from her father, when she was just five years old. Evert attended St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale and graduated in 1973.

Under the able guidance of her father, Evert became the No. 1 under-14 girl in the United States, in 1969. In the same year, she played her first senior tournament as well, reaching the semifinals. In 1970, she won the national 16-and-under championship and was invited to play in an eight player clay court tournament in Charlotte, North Carolina. In the semifinals, she defeated Margaret Court, who was World No.1 that time. This led to her selection for the U.S. Wightman Cup team, the youngest player ever in the competition.

 

Chris Evert made her Grand Slam tournament debut at the age of age of sixteen, at the 1971 US Open. Winning 46 consecutive matches, she reached the semifinal, where she lost to Billie Jean King. In 1973, Evert was the runner-up at the French Open and Wimbledon. In 1974, she won both these events to claim her first Grand Slam singles title and won 55 consecutive matches. In 1975, she won the French Open and the first of four straight US Open titles. In 1976, she won Wimbledon again. This way, Evert was ranked World No.1 for a span of five years.

 

Since August 1973, she won 125 consecutive matches on the clay surface, with a loss of only 7 sets, thereby setting a record amongst both men and women players that stands even today. Evert also won the French Open singles title a record seven times. In 1985, she won the World No. 1 ranking for the fifth and final time. In 1986, Evert won her last Grand Slam title by beating Navratilova, at the age of 31. Following this, she retired from Tennis professional tour, in 1989. During her career, she won 157 singles titles and 8 doubles titles.

 

Evert won the WTA Tour Championships 4 times and helped the United States win the Fed Cup 8 times. The star player won at least one Grand Slam singles title each year for 13 consecutive years, from 1974 through 1986. She won 18 Grand Slam singles titles - 7 at the French Open, 6 at the US Open (3 on clay and 3 on hard courts), 3 at Wimbledon and 2 at the Australian Open (both on grass). Apart from her sportsman skills, Evert was known for her calm & resolute conduct on court, which earned her the nickname of "Ice Maiden" of tennis.

 

Evert was famous for her romantic association with top men's player Jimmy Connors in the 1970s. The couple grabbed limelight after they both claimed the singles titles at Wimbledon in 1974. They were even sited playing mixed doubles occasionally. In 1974, they were runner-up at the US Open. They even became engaged, but the romance did not last, as their wedding, planned for November 8, 1974, was called off. After this, Evert was linked with several other high-profile men, including Burt Reynolds, Geraldo Rivera, Adam Faith, Vitas Gerulaitis, Pat Boone and John Gardner “Jack” Ford, son of U.S. President Gerald Ford.

 

In the year 1979, Evert married the British tennis player John Lloyd and changed her name to "Chris Evert-Lloyd." This alliance ended in divorce in 1987. In 1988, Evert married two-time Olympic downhill skier Andy Mill. The couple had three sons - Alexander James (born October 12, 1991), Nicholas Joseph (born June 8, 1994) and Colton Jack (born June 14, 1996). However, on November 13, 2006, Evert filed for divorce. The divorce was finalized on December 4, 2006.

 

Yet once again, Evert showed intentions to marry, this time Australian golfer Greg Norman, in September 2007. Subsequently, they became engaged on December 10, 2007 and announced their engagement publicly four days later, during a press conference in South Africa. Presently, Evert operates a tennis academy in her own name, in Boca Raton, Florida. She also helps coach the Saint Andrew's School high school tennis team.

 

1974 - French Open

1975 - French Open

1976 - Wimbledon