Jimmy Connors on why he learned boxing as part of his tennis training: "My grandfather always told me that tennis was boxing at 90 ft" × Follow Us Create Notifications New User posted their first comment this is comment text Link Approve Reject & ban Delete Log in Manage your profile Editing Story Queue Video Queue Editing Stats Writer Home SEO Redirection Admin Wiki Edits Taxonomy Home Edit Site Menu Mapping Dashboard Tag Pages Community Social Feed Queue Feed Center Notification Center Affiliate Home Manage Pages Bottom Tagline Dash Timeless Stories Logout Tennis News My grandfather always told me that tennis was boxing at 90 ft - Jimmy Connors on why he learned boxing as part of his tennis training By Aayush Majumdar Modified Oct 15, 2022 09:39 AM IST Follow Us Comment Share American tennis legend Jimmy Connors. Tennis legend Jimmy Connors has revealed an interesting ideology from his early days as a tennis player and why he trained as a boxer along with playing tennis. In a recent chat with boxing legend Mike Tyson, Connors revealed that his grandfather was a pro boxer who likened tennis to boxing and believed Connors should play tennis as if he were in a boxing ring. Connors, who still holds the record for most men's tour-level titles won in the Open Era, further explained why his grandfather felt the two sports were similar. He stated that like boxing, tennis is a highly individual sport where players have to "take blows and come back from them." Speaking on a recent episode of the Advantage Connors podcast with guest Mike Tyson and hosted by Jimmy Connors and his son Brett Connors, Connors Sr. repeated his grandfather's saying that "tennis was boxing at 90 ft." and further reflected on the ideology. "My grandfather was a boxer," Jimmy Connors said to Tyson. "He trained me as a boxer. He always told me that tennis was boxing at 90 ft. Because you had to learn how to take the blows and come back from it, and duck and dodge, and figure out a way to win because it's just you and your guy who you're in the ring against." The 70-year-old further reflected on training with his grandfather and expressed that it was a very special time of his life. "His training with me and the way he talked to me, like you had, you can't buy that. You have to find somebody special that gives you that," Connors said on the same. I always felt that I couldn t screw up - Jimmy Connors reflects on his tennis career BNP Paribas Open - Day 4 Mike Tyson spoke about the contribution of his former manager Cus D'Amato towards his career and how he always advised Tyson to give it his all in the ring. Replying to the same, Jimmy Connors further reflected on his career and said that he always felt the pressure to not 'screw up' because a lot of fans were invested in his success. "It's a heavy cross to bear, to have somebody love you that much. I always felt that I couldn't screw up because people had invested so much in me. Not money, but love and attention, and try to make me what I try to become," Jimmy Connors said on the same. Connors also still holds the record for most matches played on the men's tour and most matches won by a male player in the Open Era. The American great played 1,557 matches throughout his career, winning a staggering 1,274 of those matches. He won 12 Grand Slam singles titles, including five US Open titles and and four French Open titles. Poll : 0 votes Quick Links More from Sportskeeda Edited by Hari Priya CR × Feedback Thank You! Be the first one to comment Follow Us Share Show More Comments GIF Comment in moderation 0 0 Reply x Edit Delete Delete the comment? No thanks Delete GIF Cancel Update GIF Cancel Reply ❮ ❯ GIF Comment in moderation 0 0 Reply x Edit Delete Delete the comment? 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