Tennis and broadcasting legend Annabel Croft has made a heartbreaking admission after the death of her husband two years ago.
The 58-year-old was married to Mel Coleman for 30 years when, in 2023, a short battle with stomach cancer sadly resulted in him passing away.
Two years on, Croft has lifted the lid on living her life without her husband and how she's moving house to start afresh.
She told The Sun: “It’s taken me back to living on my own before Mel came into my life, as that 15-year-old playing at Wimbledon for the first time, travelling the world on planes and across America on Greyhound buses.
“I’ve gone full circle to that person because I’ve had to.
“The house has been my life for 25 years. Everything about it is Mel because he built it. We’ve had amazing memories here that are impossible to forget, but I’m ready to go.”
Croft lives in a five-bedroom family home that Coleman built but uses just the kitchen and bedroom.
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Annabel Croft sadly lost her husband Mel Coleman in 2023 after a short battle with cancer
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She continued: “What gives me pleasure is going for a morning walk in the park, running with my friends, having a coffee, a meal out and being with my family.
"I’ve realised I don’t need much any more. I don’t want overheads, maintenance, a garden to look after.”
Heartbreakingly, Croft admitted that she has to “trick my brain” into thinking that her husband is away on a work function when spending time by herself at the house.
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“I just walk into an empty house,” she said. “So I try to trick my brain into thinking about when Mel was out at a work function and I’d come into the house on my own. Only, every night it is like this.
“Thankfully, I’m busy, that’s always been the same and that’s helpful.”
Croft featured in the BBC show Strictly Come Dancing just a few months after losing her husband in May 2023.
Coleman passed just 16 weeks after he was diagnosed with stage four colon cancer, with Croft insisting her time on the show was 'special'.
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Annabel Croft said she has to 'trick' her brain into thinking her husband is away after his sudden passing
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She continued: “I wish I could find some way of replacing Strictly in my life in terms of what that show was to me.
"It was so special and joyful.”
Earlier this year, rumours of a new romantic interest began swirling online after Croft was spotted out on a lunch date. The former tennis player was keen to play down these rumours, however.
She explained: “He’s my bank manager and a great friend who was also close to Mel.
“We were looking at photographs of Mel together. Mel adored him and he’s been really helpful to me.”
During her career, Croft was victorious in the 1984 Virginia Slims of San Diego and rose to a career-high ranking of 24th, but retired in 1988 at the age of just 21.
Croft marked the youngest Briton in almost 100 years to play in the Wimbledon main draw, where she faced Chris Evert in a “defining” moment in her career.
“I’ll always be part of Wimbledon history and that makes me proud," she said.
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