Players: Jimmy Connors and Martina Navratilova
- Jimmy Connors. Eight-time Grand Slam champion with a record 109 singles titles
Jimmy Connors, born in 1952, was one of the greatest tennis players of his time. Coached by his mother, Gloria, Connors was one of the first few players to hit the ball flat and mostly down the baseline. Because he was so adept at lifting the ball, Connors’ game would end up being very influential for future generations of tennis players.
“Jimbo” turned professional in 1972 and became world No. 1 in 1974. In fact, he won three of the four Grand Slams that year despite being barred from the tournament. Roland Garrosfourth, because of the lawsuit filed against “ATP”.
Connors remained at the top of the ATP rankings for 160 consecutive weeks between 1974 and 1977. Losing his throne to Bjorn Borg for just one week on August 23, 1977, he returned to the #1 ranking for another 819 weeks until spring.
In total, Connors held the No. 1 ranking for 268 weeks, a record he set in 1983 that was surpassed by Ivan Lendl in 1990 and later by Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. Between 1979 and 1981, Connors was not performing as well as he had in his prime, and he did not reach a Grand Slam final. It took him a while, but he was able to win Grand Slams and become the world No. 1 again in 1982 and 1983, winning three more Grand Slam titles: Wimbledon In 1982 and US Open: In 1982 and 1983.
Connors remained a top 10 player until April 1989, when he was 37 years old. By the end of his long career, he had a record 109 titles on tour. He won eight Grand Slam titles; that Australian Open (1974), Wimbledon (1974, 1982) and US Open (1974, 1976, 1978, 1982, 1983).
- Martina Navratilova, 18-time Grand Slam champion with a record 167 singles titles
Martina Navratilova, born in 1956, was, according to Billie Jean King, “the greatest singles, doubles and mixed doubles player who ever lived.” Since 1968, when the Open Era began, no player, male or female, has won more singles matches (167), doubles (177) or matches (2,189) than Navratilova. Navratilova won a total of 18 Grand Slam singles titles, with a record nine Wimbledon crowns, six in a row between 1982 and 1987.
By 1992, he had already collected 31 Grand Slam doubles titles and six mixed doubles titles. She only missed out on the mixed doubles Australian Open title to complete the Boxed Set Grand Slam, which means winning all four events in singles, doubles and mixed doubles. He also held the record for six consecutive Grand Slam titles between the 1983 and 1984 US Opens (then the Australian Open was held in December) and held the world No. 1 ranking for 332 weeks, a record at the time.
Venue: Caesars Palace, Las Vegas
The battle of the champions was held at Caesars Palace, a luxury hotel and casino in Las Vegas. The hotel opened in 1966 and has seen many stars such as Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald perform under its roof. Caesars Palace has also hosted boxing matches, and its parking lot was even the site of a Formula 1 race in 1981 and 1982.
Facts: Connors wins in straight sets
In 1992, Navratilova, who had previously refused to compete in man-versus-woman matches against Ili Nastase and John McEnroe, agreed to play against Connors. Unlike the famous battle of the sexes hosted by Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs, this “Battle of the Champions” was not a political event. Each player was paid $500,000 to compete and the prize money was doubled for the winner. It was all about money and entertainment, and it wasn’t broadcast on national television, but on pay-per-view.
The rules were changed to make it fairer. Connors had just one serve and Navratilova could hit in the first half of doubles. It wasn’t enough for Connors to put aside his fighting spirit. “You think it’s funny,” he said, according to The New York Times. “I consider it my job to play against Martina. And it’s not as easy as you think. But I’ve been the best in men’s tennis. That’s something I really enjoyed. It would be nice to be the unofficial women’s champion now.”
In front of more than 13,000 spectators, the two tennis legends played an awkward match. “This so-called foul shot in the desert turned out to be a vanilla-flavored tennis match, of the soft-serve variety,” wrote The Los Angeles Times, unconvinced by the display. Allowing only one serve, Connors averaged 65 mph, well below the normal standards of professional tennis.
Although he insisted he was taking the match so seriously, he seemed to be hitting more softly than at the US Open, where he recently reached the second round. She was broken in the early games and Navratilova took a 3-1 lead. Connors was able to tie the score and after committing 26 unforced errors, including a double fault on set point, she took the first set 7-5 after 52 minutes. The second set was much easier for Jimbo, who found her rhythm, while Navratilova was unable to make good use of the extra space she was given. Connors won 7-5, 6-2.
Connors stated that he was willing to engage in the same type of show in the future, but that he would refuse to allow extended court to his opponent. “It was too much for a 40-year-old man,” he said. “It was just too much ground to cover.”
“I’m glad it’s over,” Navratilova commented. “It was such a long build-up and I was more nervous than I’ve ever been for a game. It was so different from anything I’ve done before. It was a different kind of pressure, 14,000 people and a pay-per-view audience.”
What next? Connors reveals that he bet himself a million dollars
The 1992 episode of Battle of the Sexes would be the last of its kind. Although Karsten Braasch, then ranked 200 in the world, defeated both Williams sisters in 1998, their matches were played away from the cameras and went just over a set each. Despite the regular controversy, no one would go as far as organizing another official Battle of the Sexes.
Years later, in 2013, Connors would reveal that she had bet a million dollars on going two sets without losing more than eight games, which may explain her shaky start and her relief when Navratilova’s level dropped in the second set.
