Billie Jean King looking forward with the Freedoms and World TeamTennis

Billie Jean King sat in the side room of a sprawling Villanova home on Friday night.

A cocktail party was about to commence outside, part of a Philadelphia Freedoms-directed fund-raiser for Assistance in Healthcare (AIH), a nonprofit that helps local families pay for the cost of cancer treatment. The Freedoms owner would be needed out there momentarily.

In the wood-paneled side room, King leaned back on a leather couch. She appeared in no rush as she chatted with a small group of Freedoms staff members.

Someone mentioned that Andy Roddick, who is set to be featured in the Freedoms' Aug. 10 match, should draw a large crowd to Villanova's Pavilion.

"I don't care," King said. "I just want the team to win."

Wearing red-rimmed glasses, the tennis legend and lifelong champion of gender equality displayed a fierce competitiveness and encyclopedic knowledge of athletic history, even in casual conversation.

The 72-year-old rattled off names of tennis greats, explained concepts, and listed her recommendations for books on the sport.

She wanted to hear from everyone else in the room, often turning the attention away from her own esteemed career, which includes 39 Grand Slam titles, that monumental win over Bobby Riggs in the 1973 Battle of the Sexes, and a Presidential Medal of Freedom.

In 1974, she also cofounded World TeamTennis, the coed professional league in which the Freedoms play. King said she counts down the days until the 2016 season, which begins July 31, and takes pride in the success of players, such as Olympic-bound Caroline Wozniacki.

"If you see a World TeamTennis match, you see my philosophy on life - equality, social justice, everything. It's right there," King said. "But more importantly it's about competition. We want to win. Freedoms want to win the whole thing this year."

"The great thing about us, that differentiates us, is that we do have the men and women equally on the team," she added. "There's not one pro sport that does that."

This year, King has publicly taken a stand for equal pay for U.S. women's soccer and challenged FIFA president Gianni Infantino to hire more women for executive roles. Through her Women's Sports Foundation, she has advocated for equal access to all sports.

King has been called a trailblazer. But unless she is asked, King said she doesn't think about her past much.

She has embraced that forward-thinking mentality since she was 15.

It was the first time she made the front page of a sports section. She lost a match the day before, and was walking around the house complaining that the paper highlighted her defeat. Her father, Bill, stopped her.

"I'll never forget this. I remember exactly where we were standing, right where the oven is in the kitchen," she said, squinting as if she could see the moment. "He goes, 'Stop right there.' That is exactly how he said it, 'Stop right there.' He said 'What is this about?' I said, 'It's about my match.' He said, 'When was it?' "

"I go, 'Yesterday.' And he goes, 'Exactly. It was yesterday. It doesn't matter,' " she continued. "So from that moment on, he never let me read another press clipping."

Looking ahead, King wants the Freedoms to win the 2016 World TeamTennis finals. In Philadelphia, she also wants the team to give back with events such as Friday's AIH fund-raiser, as well as its continued work to revitalize public tennis courts, such as those at North Philadelphia's Hunting Park. The Freedoms are also holding themed nights this season to attract families.

"I want to make such a difference," King said. The Freedoms "met with the mayor and said, 'What can we do to help the community?' We want to be a fabric of the community."

emccarthy@phillynews.com

@ErinMcPSU