New York City, N.Y. (AP) – Billie Jean King’s name will be added to the National Tennis Center during an opening-night ceremony at the U.S. Open, The New York Times reported.

The plan to rename the tennis facility in Flushing, N.Y., was announced at a news conference Aug. 3 at Arthur Ashe Stadium. King, her mother, Betty, and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg attended.

“This is a show of faith and respect,” King told the Times. “And with it, a sense of responsibility. I don’t think I’ll ever comprehend this.”

The change will take effect Aug. 28, the start of the U.S. Open, the newspaper reported.

The United States Tennis Association previously honored Ashe by naming its stadium after him nine years ago.

King said she is honored to share her name at the center with Ashe, the first black man to win the U.S. Open and Wimbledon. Ashe died in 1993 of AIDS-related pneumonia in 1993, after contracting the disease through a blood transfusion during heart surgery.

“Arthur and I are now side by side, and we’re both public-park kids,” said the 62-year-old King, who came out as a lesbian in the 1980s. “We were born the same year, and we fought for human rights.”

King, the only woman to win U.S. singles titles on all four surfaces – grass, clay, carpet and hard court – won a record 20 Wimbledon titles and four U.S. Open championships. She also beat Bobby Riggs in a nationally televised showdown billed as “The Battle of the Sexes” in 1973 – a triumph that brought attention to women’s sports.

Arlen Kantarian, the USTA’s chief executive of professional tennis, told the newspaper that the association had long been exploring ways to honor King.

“You’re talking about coming up with something that measured up to the impact Billie Jean has had on tennis and society,” he said.

USTA chair Franklin Johnson said he brought up the idea of renaming the center for King in March. The USTA voted unanimously in favor of the proposal last month.

“Once it was put forward, people gravitated toward it,” Johnson said. “It was readily accepted that we needed to honor her in this way.”