Billie Jean King’s ‘pet peeve’ is Wimbledon’s ‘horrible’ all white uniform policy
After defeating Andre Agassi in the 1990 final, Wimbledon legend and four-time champion Billie Jean King revealed how one of her pet peeves is the all-white rule at the All England Club.
It was a golden era for tennis as the sport’s dominance was at its peak, and it was in this period that King first began to make a name for herself. She was at the peak of her career in 1990 and began to beat the great Andre Agassi.
The two began to argue over their respective rankings, with Agassi’s supremacy in the game at the height of his powers, and King believing she was the best hope for the future. The pair would clash on several occasions in the future, and after beating her in the final of the 1990 Australian Open finals, Agassi famously described her as ‘just a little spitfire’.
King would go on to achieve some of her greatest achievements, including winning the Wimbledon singles title in 1990, in 1991 reaching the final of the US Open in 1991 and in 1991 reaching the final of Australian Open, before losing to eventual runner up Steffi Graf. King would continue to improve and her status amongst the tennis community grew, and at the age of 24, she became the youngest Wimbledon singles champion in history.
On the occasion of the Australian Open final between Agassi and King in 1991, Agassi was able to get King’s attention, and she wrote down the number 17 in her racquet case, which she gave to him. The pair would clash on multiple occasions, with Agassi winning three matches between them, and one of them was a famous 5-hour battle that lasted into the night.
Many believe that Agassi’s battle against King is one of the greatest tennis battles ever, and it is one that is still talked about to this day. The final was the only match that Agassi lost to King on the ATP tour, as he eventually lost in the final of the US Open in 2000.
When Wimbledon was first mooted, Agassi was tipped to win the tournament in 1994 (as he did in 1996 and 1999), however, King ended up winning the event two years in succession, before he retired from the event
