One can sacrifice anything for their children, every parent would agree. Take the example of tennis. Coco Gauff’s parents sacrificed their careers so that their daughter could pursue her tennis dream. Eventually, that sacrifice paid out as Gauff has gone on to become one of the world’s best players currently. However, when it came to Chris Evert, it wasn’t exactly that way, in a good sense. During her sons’ teenage phase, she sparked interest in their tennis games with a unique idea.

During an interview with the USTA in 2010, the American legend was asked how tennis helped bond her with her sons and family. Interestingly, Evert came from a tennis family, with her father, Jimmy, being a professional tennis coach. As a result, tennis ran deep into the roots of the Evert family.

The American legend replied, “Tuesdays and Thursdays I’d have to play like a set with my mom and she would drop shot me and then lob me and just totally abuse me. I would always just hate to play her but she taught me how to drop shot and lob I learned that from her so like I said it’s a great thing and I play tennis with my kids too and I actually I have three teenage boys and I actually offered them a bet of x amount of money the day that they beat me two out of three sets and of course um it’s a lot of money because I don’t think they’re never going to beat me.”

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via Imago

Evert has three sons, Colton, Alexander, and Nicholas. The eldest son, Alexander is 33 years old, while Colton and Nicholas are 28 and 30, respectively. The trio share a wonderful bond with their mother and have always been a close-knit family. Earlier this year, Nicholas and his wife, Rebecca, welcomed their first child. Subsequently, Evert couldn’t control her excitement and wrote, “My son Nicky and his wife Rebecca welcomed their first child, Hayden James into this world last nite..Thanks for bringing more love into our family; so proud of you two,” while sharing her photo with the mother and the child.

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Recently, Evert’s eldest son, Alexander, celebrated his 33rd birthday. On the special occasion, Evert penned down a heartfelt message for him.

Chris Evert thanks her son for being a pillar of support

Late last year, Evert revealed a grim update that ovarian cancer had struck her again. Subsequently, she underwent chemotherapy and got cancer-free in July this year. During that tough phase, her sons stood by her and supported their mother through thick and thin. As a result, she couldn’t stop mentioning it during a birthday wish for her eldest son, Alexander.

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Evert took to social media and wrote, “Happy 33rd birthday to my amazing son Alex. Thank you for being my rock the last few years when I’ve needed you. Watching you grow into the kind and caring person you are today fills me with pride. Here’s to many more years of love, happiness, and adventure! ❤️ Mom.”

Along with the sweet message, Evert also shared some adorable glimpses of herself with her son. Evert’s wonderful message for her son on his birthday shows how much love and care they share in their family. Indeed, the two are setting mother-son relationship goals with their adorable gestures.