5 matches that shaped Steffi Graf's career ft. surpassing Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova's record at French Open 1996
Steffi Graf was the top name in women's tennis in the late 1980s and most of the 1990s. The German tennis player broke up the dominance of American duo Christ Evert and Martina Navratilova in the sport with her success.
Graf won an incredible 107 titles in her career. However, the German player's dominance on the Grand Slam stage truly set her apart from her peers.
Let's take a look back at some of the matches that were pivotal in the former World No. 1's career.
#5 Steffi Graf vs Martina Navratilova, French Open 1987
Even though Graf had a breakthrough year in 1986 with 8 titles, the German player was yet to make a mark on the Grand Slam stage when she faced Martina Navratilova at Rolland Garros. Her best performance before that at a Major was reaching the semifinal at the 1986 US Open, where she lost to Martina Navratilova.
However, at the 1987 French Open, Graf had her moment as she reached her maiden Major final. She entered the event as the second seed and defeated Csilla Bartos Cserepy, Iva Budarova, Jana Novotna, Helen Kelesi, Manuela Maleeva-Fragniere, and Gabriela Sabatini, on her way to the final. The German faced off against Martina Navratilova in the final having lost just one set in the tournament.
In the title-decider, Graf showed no signs of nerves in her first Major final, winning the first set 6-4. The then 17-time Major champion responded in the second set, winning it 6-4. However, it was the German who edged out the American in the third set 8-6 to won her first Grand Slam.
This opened the doors for Graf at Grand Slams as she reached the finals of the Wimbledon and US Open in the same year. However, on both those occasions she lost to Navratilova.
#4 Steffi Graf vs Gabriela Sabatini, 1988 Seoul Olympics
Steffi Graf's 1988 season is one of the greatest individual seasons any tennis player, male or female has had in the sport's history. The German player completed the Calendar Slam that year, winning all four Majors for the season.
The season became even more special for the World No. 1 at the Seoul Olympics. Graf entered the Games as the top seed and made her way without much trouble to the semifinals. In the last four, she eased past Zina Garrison, beating the American while only dropping two games.
Graf faced off against Gabriela Sabatini in the final. The German player had just beaten the Argentine at the US Open final and had a 13-2 lead in their head-to-head record at that point. Justifying her tag as the favorite, Graf won the match in straight sets, creating history as she became the first player to complete the Golden Slam.
#3 Steffi Graf vs Mary Joe Fernandez, French Open 1993
Steffi Graf received stiff competition from Monica Seles during the 1991 and 1992 seasons. The Yugoslavian won six of the eight Majors in those two seasons and disrupted Graf's dominance in the sport.
1993 began on the same note, as Seles defeated Graf at the Australian Open final. However, in an astonishing and terrible turn of events, Seles was attacked by a fan during her match at the Hamburg Open. This put the Yugoslav player out of competitive tennis for two years.
Graf again became the top player in women's tennis. At the 1993 French Open, the German reached the final without dropping the set. In the summit clash, she faced fifth-seeded Mary Joe Hernandez. Graf led their head-to-head 8-0 leading up to the final. The pair had contested in the final in the event in Berlin that year, where the American had won her first set off Graf.
She started on a similar note in the Roland Garros final as well, winning the first set. But Graf, being the champion she was, turned the match around to win in three sets win her 12th Grand Slam, and take the No. 1 ranking from Seles.
Graf dominated the rest of the year as she won the Wimbledon and the US Open titles as well.
#2 Steffi Graf vs Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, 1996 French Open
Steffi Graf entered the 1996 French Open with 18 Major titles to her name. This tied her with the legendary American duo of Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova as the players with the most number of Grand Slam titles in the Open Era.
Graf was the defending champion in Paris, having won the title in 1995. The German put on a masterclass on the Parisian clay once again, as she reached the final of the French Open without dropping a set. She faced off against Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, whom she had beaten in the final the previous year.
Graf had a 26-7 head-to-head advantage against her Spanish opponent. The German player, having beaten the Spaniard at the French Open and the Wimbledon finals the previous year, was the favorite here too. The match itself was a grueling three-set battle, which Graf won, thrillingly taking the final set 10-8. This was her 19th Major and took her past Evert and Navratilova.
#1 Steffi Graf vs Martina Hingis, 1999 French Open
1997 was the year when Steffi Graf did not win a Grand Slam for the first time since 1986. The year marked the end of her dominance in women's tennis. The following year was another barren run for the German as far as Grand Slams were considered.
However, the German player put on an inspired run at the 1999 French Open. Entering the event as the sixth seed, Graf won her first four matches with relative ease. She then faced second-seeded Lindsay Davenport in the quarterfinals, winning in three sets. The German player had to endure another three-set thriller to get the better of third-seeded Monica Seles in the semifinal. This win set up a clash with top seed Martina Hingis in the final.
Hingis was the World No.1 and had won five of the last nine Majors, reaching two other finals. However, Graf had a 6-2 head-to-head advantage over the Swiss player. The German shows her class in the match, coming back in the match after losing the first set and trailing in the second, to win it in three sets. This was the German's last Grand Slam win.