Jimmy Connors recounts living '4-5 blocks' away from Ilie Nastase: "We go up, do our laundry, hang with him... Don't think I could handle anymore"

Jimmy Connors recently looked back on his experience of living near his good friend and fellow competitor Ilie Nastase during their early days.

Connors and Nastase have been as thick as thieves since monopolizing men's tennis in the 1970s. Both players were formerly ranked World No. 1 and have taken on each other 27 times. Apart from singles, they also partnered up in doubles frequently and won two major titles — 1973 Wimbledon and the 1975 US Open.

Jimmy Connors and his son Brett sat down to discuss Ilie Nastase's latest documentary film 'Nasty' on their podcast 'Advantage Connors' last week. During the conversation, the latter recalled how the eight-time Major winner previously used to live in the same neighborhood as the Romanian in New York City.

"Yeah, man, I remember he had that great apartment from the street. We stayed in, what was it, Park Avenue? We stayed at the Regency Hotel [in Park Avenue, New York City] and he was, what, 4-5 blocks to the left?" Brett Connors asked his father on the podcast (12:38).

The 71-year-old replied that he and his family spent a lot of time with Ilie Nastase on the pretext of doing laundry. He further claimed that he missed those bygone days, but added that he 'couldn't handle' them at his current age.

"Yeah, we go up and do our laundry and hang with him and go out and have dinners with his family," Jimmy Connors said (12:53). "Good days, good days and I always say that I miss those days and and I do. I don't think I could handle them anymore as time has gone on. But it sure was a great experience."

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Jimmy Connors: "Ilie Nastase took me under his wing, when I was 15-16 years old and guided me around the tour"

Ilie Nastase reacts to a point at 1978 Wimbledon

Jimmy Connors also sheds some light on Ilie Nastase acting as his mentor during his teenage years. The American admittedly learned a lot from the two-time Major winner both on and off the court.

"He took me under his wing, when I was 15-16 years old and kind of guided me around the tour," Jimmy Connors said on his podcast. (7:16). "Not only on the court, but off the court too. I learnt a lot from Nasty, you know. Some good, some bad. But I learnt a lot from him, and his friendship and playing doubles with him."

Moreover, the eight-time Major titlist stated that Nastase was one of the most influential tennis players in the 1970s and was admired by his peers.

"But the attention, and the excitement, and what he brought to tennis...he was the only guy, that when he played the stands were full of players," he added (8:28). "They wanted to definitely go and watch his genius, but they wanted to see what else he got."