Tennis: Connors still swaggering after all these years

Has Jimmy Connors mellowed with age? "I don't think that it would be fair to what I achieved and who I am if I had," he says with a drawl. "I kind of like me like this."

Connors is 53 now but his voice buzzes along a phone line with the same mischief and swagger and prickle that he brought to the tennis court. For two decades he was tennis's life force. A foul-mouthed, fist-pumping rogue who had it all: the strokes, the charm, the rough-and-ready background, the bad-tempered rivalry with John McEnroe, the red-hot romance with queen of the court Chris Evert, to whom he was engaged but never married, and eight grand slams. The crowds loved him. And he loved tennis.

He played on and on, the regular tour until he was 40 and then the senior tour for another six years until suddenly, five years ago, he retired. No more tennis, no more watching tennis, no more bowl-haired American playing the fool.

He went back to Santa Barbara, to his wife Patti, a former Playboy playmate of the year, and his two children, to the house where he has now lived for 22 years. "There were family priorities that needed to be taken care of," he said. "I used to be away 42 weeks a year. I wanted to see my kids grow up." He did and helped Patti battle thyroid cancer. Brett is now 26, Aubree Leigh 21, and Connors has filled the hole the children have left with dogs - five of them - which he walks every sunny California morning.

But the exile couldn't last forever and three months ago he got bored and he picked up a racket again. Nothing too full-on, but he had become tired of going to the gym. "I don't play that often and my favourite opponent is the backboard - he never misses. I missed tennis." And tennis has missed him.

For the second year in a row the BBC will fly him out to commentate on Wimbledon. As it will McEnroe. How did he and McEnroe get on last year? "We worked for the same organisation but we weren't in the booth together," he says with a twinkle. "It certainly would be a very interesting opportunity for the BBC to pair us together." How big would the booth have to be? "Big enough to square off in, that's for sure. But Wimbledon is up against some heavy competition this year with the World Cup, so who knows?

"I had a great time last year. I was working with John Lloyd, who is a buddy, and Boris Becker and Tracy Austin. I worked 14, 15 years ago for NBC but commentary for the BBC is quite different. They want to hear the crowd and the tennis is centre stage, which is quite right."

Connors appeared in six Wimbledon finals and won the title twice: in 1974, when Evert won too and they danced at the champions' dinner to The Girl That I Marry, and in 1982, in that gladiatorial battle with McEnroe, then defending champion, the longest singles final in Wimbledon history which stretched to 4hr 16min.

"I had the most fun at Wimbledon. But the tradition was tough, the way they went about things, it was very different to my upbringing. New York was a great fit for me, a great crowd and the pace of the city suited me. That's not to say I didn't play great at Wimbledon. I did, but Bjorn Bjorg, say, was more suited."

Connors' passion for tennis and his temperament came from his mother Gloria, who was also his coach. His father James, with whom he seems to have had a distant relationship, wasn't really interested. Gloria was a terrier, a female coach on the men's tour snapping at the establishment to produce a champion streetfighter. As Connors has said before, for his family tennis was a way out. And he doesn't bother hiding his contempt for those who don't make the most of their ability.

"The guys playing the pro tour now are satisfied with mediocrity; they make a good living with some effort. It is a luxury to be able to not have to worry about money. I don't know if it is a luxury which breeds the right sort of athletes."

Who does he like to watch now? "[Rafael] Nadal plays with a passion and exuberance and I also like [Roger] Federer because he is laid back and calm, and the way he goes around playing is something to see. It would be nice to see some others step up to the challenge. [Andy] Roddick for one [with whom he may work in the future - "we're in discussion, let's put it like that"], Ivan Ljubicic and Marcos Baghdatis too."

He is noncommittal about Andy Murray - "he's won one [tour title], he's got to win more." But ask about Tim Henman's chances this Wimbledon and he becomes almost avuncular. "I'm going to come out on a limb here. Everyone has written him off saying he's too old, but with a lot less pressure I think he could do pretty darn well."

Would he swap his time at the top for today's with all the riches it brings? "No, I was there in a golden age of tennis. There were characters and great rivalries and the way the fans took to us - tennis was one of the sports up there with football and basketball.

"I was in my own little world. I enjoyed everything about it on and off court. The sacrifice didn't bother me. Even as a kid I didn't bother about missing the parties. I don't know if anyone has as much fun as I did."