ESPN reported that Riggs tanked match to settle debt.
Ray Stubblebine/AP
Was the historic 1973 “Battle of the Sexes” tennis match fixed? ESPN’s Outside the Lines reported that a golf pro in Tampa heard the Mafia saying that Bobby Riggs was going to intentionally lose the match to settle a gambling debt. Billie Jean King, the famed female player who beat Riggs, issued a statement saying the story is ridiculous. “I was on the court with Bobby, and I know he was not tanking the match. I could see in his eyes and body language he wanted to win.”
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