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The "Rocket" grounded by stroke

Tennis legend Rod Laver suffered a stroke while in the midst of doing a television interview for ESPN.

The 59-year-old Australian with 11 Grand Slams (including two occasions when he won all four majors in the same year to complete the Golden Grand Slam) to his name has been admitted at the UCLA Medical Center.

No information about his condition is available.

Laver, at the time of the stroke, was being interviewed as part of an upcoming series on the greatest athletes of the 20th century.

The "Rocket" backed his lethal groundstrokes to four Wimbledons, three Australian titles, two US championships and two French titles, besides a further nine Grand Slam doubles titles, in course of his 23-year career. In 1961, 1962, 1968 and 1969, Laver topped the world rankings.

Laver, who now lives in Newport Beach, California, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1981.