"I had death threats. I had people who hated me. People told me I was immoral."
Shortly before the 1977 US Open, the 42-year-old American won a legal battle to compete in the women's events, leaving her at the centre of a polarising story which made headlines across the world.
"Everybody had a reaction. They were either for her or against her," says Britain's Sue Barker, who played against Richards twice in her career and remembers her being booed off court during one of the matches.
"I was a supporter of Renee, I was one of the few in a way.