Jimmy Connors takes trip down the memory lane with iconic picture of him with Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and others at 1980 Kenny Rogers' Classic

Former American tennis player Jimmy Connors reacted to a throwback photo of him posing alongside greats like Michael Jordan, Woody Harrelson, Kevin Curran, Kenny Rogers, and others at the 1980 Kenny Rogers' Classic Weekend. Connors was one of the most prominent players of his time with a record title tally in his repertoire.

Connors dominated the tennis world during the golden generation from the 1970s to the 1980s. He spent 268 weeks as the ATP Tour World No. 1 and added eight Grand Slam titles to his wall of fame. Having won 1,274 matches and 109 titles and played 1,557, the 72-year-old earned three Open Era men's singles records which still stand strong. Though he retired from professional tennis in 1996, he is strongly associated with sports and often offers unique takes on events and players.

Recently, a picture from the 1980 Kenny Rogers' Classic Weekend featuring Jimmy Connors, basketball legends Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Dominique Wilkins, and actor Woody Harrelson among others, received a reaction from Connors.

Connors took to his X handle to post the picture with a basketball and a pair of eye emojis.

Years after his retirement, Connors also incorporated his learnings into coaching top-tier players. He coached Andy Roddick in 2006, helping him to reach the US Open finals, where he lost to Novak Djokovic. The coach-mentee duo separated in 2008. He then coached the iconic former Russian player Maria Sharapova but split just after one match.

Jimmy Connors once shared he loved defeating the rivals who pushed his limits in tennis

Jimmy Connors at the Mercedes Tournament Of Champions - (Source: Getty)

Jimmy Connors was known for his rivalries with John McEnroe, Björn Borg, Arthur Ashe, Rod Laver, and others. In the Advantage Connors podcast on May 2023, when asked about who he felt the most satisfied beating on the court, the eight-time Grand Slam winner revealed that he loved to beat the men who brought the best out of him.

"I like beating the guys who brought out the best in me and even beyond that so who was that? I can mention Lendl, I can mention McEnroe, I can mention Borg, I can mention Vilas, I can mention Gerulaitis, I can mention Jose Luis Clerc," he said in the Advantage Connors podcast.

Connors mentioned Jose Luis Clerc, Vitas Gerulaitis, Guillermo Vilas, Bjorn Borg, and McEnroe as his formidable opponents. He further noted how proud he was to learn that most men wanted to surpass him in the sport.

"I always took great pride in knowing that I was the one guy that everybody wanted to beat more than anything because of a lot of things that happened early in my career and all that. That’s just the way it was."

Jimmy Connors' career also included some commentary stints. He covered the French Open and Wimbledon tournaments from 1990 to 1991. He was also part of the commentary team of BBC alongside John McEnroe at Wimbledon in 2005, 2006, and 2007.