Anyone For Tennis...?
With Wimbledon just around the corner, meet Shannon Elizabeth, the American Pie star who very nearly made it as a tennis pro.
Before she took her clothes off in American Pie, before she was a slinky jewel thief in Jay And Silent Bob Strike Back and long before she played ‘The Sexy One’ in Love Actually, Shannon Elizabeth was busy kicking up a racquet.
Tennis was more than just a hobby for the young Shannon Elizabeth Fadal. One of the top ranked junior players in the US, she had very real dreams of Grand Slam glory. Not that the actress believes she had much hope of courting success.
“I feel I could fake it really well,” she explains. “I didn’t have a great forehand but if I was playing somebody with a great forehand, I knew how to mess them up. I had a great backhand but I still had a lot of work to do. I just didn’t pursue it.”
Although she never played with her hero Andre Agassi, Shannon did once pick up a racquet with one of the game’s legends. Not that she could remember who when ESPN asked her about said charity match.
“This sounds awful but I can’t think of his name,” she blurted before being reminded that the man she played with was none other than John McEnroe.
“I haven’t said ‘goodbye’ to tennis,” adds Ms Elizabeth. “I still play every once in a while but not nearly as much as I’d like to.”