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Legendary Margaret Court is coming to Sri Lanka
By Shamseer Jaleel
Australian tennis legend, Margaret Court, is to visit Sri Lanka later this month - on the invitation of the Sri Lanka Tennis Association President, Suresh Subramaniam.

Court, winner of a record 65 Grand Slam titles, will arrive in the Island on March 29, with her husband Barry. She will conduct three coaching sessions on March 31 and April 1. She has also expressed her wish to visit orphanages and the tsunami-devastated areas in the South.

The president of the SLTA Suresh spoke to The Sunday Times and told that "We at SLTA feel honoured that Margaret Court is visiting our country; she is after all still a legendary figure in tennis. Obviously, there are a lot of tips she can give our players, but I am sure her inspirational value will be greater. So, we have set aside some time for her to talk to the players,'' said Subramaniam.

The visit was arranged during Subramaniam's visit to Melbourne for the Australian Open last month. Suresh further told that "We happened to sit next to each other in the invitees' enclosure and also were accommodated in the same hotel. Sri Lanka had been in the news because of the tsunami and she was keen to know about the country - so I invited her and husband, Barry, to come and see the place.''

They will fly out at their own expense, but the SLTA will pick up all the tabs during their weeklong stay. In her 1959-75 career, Court, 63, amassed an incredible 65 major singles, doubles and mixed doubles titles, including 11 Australian Opens; 5 US Opens; 5 French and 3 Wimbledon Singles titles. No other player, man or woman, in the history of the game has surpassed that record. She was the first Australian to win Wimbledon; to win the Grand Slam and to be the first mother to be no. 1 in the world - achievements that moved Australian tennis officials to name the main court of the Australian Open venue, the Margaret Court Arena. Only two other great players have had Grand Slam courts named after them: Rod Laver in Melbourne and American Arthur Ashe at Flushing Meadows, New York.

In November 1999, Margaret was nominated as one of the top Sportswomen of the Century in Vienna, Austria.

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