Chris Evert misses ex-husband, children. “Never in a million years did I imagine it would end up like this.”

Former tennis star Chris Evert says she had “no idea” her divorce from Australian golf great Greg Norman was coming. Evert, 55, married Norman in a lavish ceremony in the Bahamas in June 2008. They were divorced 18 months later. “I had no idea it was coming,” she told Woman’s Day magazine, adding that the pair had agreed not to go into the details of their split in public. “It wasn’t talked about, ever. “Never in a million years did I imagine it would end up like this.”

The couple announced their engagement two years after Evert’s 2006 divorce from American ski champion Andy Mill, to whom she was married for 20 years.

Norman divorced his wife of 25 years, Laura Andrassy, also in 2006.

Evert, who has been in counselling since the separation, said she thought her love with Norman would last forever but they turned out to be “just very different people”.

“It was our priorities and our lifestyles,” she said.

“I wanted roots and he wanted wings.”

The former world No.1 with 18 grand slam singles titles to her name said she spent far too much time away from her three teenage sons after marrying Norman.

“I am the first to admit I need to hold myself accountable and responsible, which I am doing,” she said.

“But Greg needs to take accountability for the promises he made and the way he left.”

Evert also said guilt played a part in their marriage breakdown.

“I still had an enormous amount of guilt,” she said.

“I brought that into my marriage with Greg and I allowed it to have an effect.

“I’ve also learned, chances are, any relationship that starts out in a dishonest way is not going to work.

“It already had a strike against it.”

Evert was asked if she missed Norman.

“I miss my family time with Andy and the kids,” she replied.

“That was 20 years of history. Probably the best years of my life.

“I also really miss Greg’s parents. The best part about him are his parents.

“They are great people. They’re very down to earth and level headed.

“I always got along great with them.”

Norman was Evert’s third husband.

She married English tennis player John Lloyd in 1979 and they divorced in 1987.

A year later, she married Mill, an Olympic downhill skier. The couple had three sons – Alexander, 18, Nicholas, 16 and Colton, 14.

They divorced in December 2006.

Evert said there was a part of her that was still “angry and hurt” but she was working hard on “healing and accepting”.

“I blame nobody but me for leaving my marriage [to Mill],” she said.

“But I have been trying to figure out why I crossed that line.

“What was it in me that I allowed myself to fall in love with another man when I was in a marriage?”

Evert said she had not dated since the divorce and wasn’t looking for another relationship.

“I’m in the best place possible for me – to be living alone this summer with access to my kids and spending time with my sister in such a beautiful setting,” she said.

“This is the first time in many years that I’ve been alone.

“It’s a time for self reflection, reading a lot of books, doing yoga and hiking.”