"If it doesn't show, I don't care"- When Steffi Graf responded to Martina Navratilova's claims that she found no pleasure in tennis
Steffi Graf once responded to Martina Navratilova claiming her to be someone who had no pleasure for tennis.
The German won her first title at the US Open in 1988 and successfully defended it in 1989 by defeating Navratilova 3-6, 7-5, 6-1 in the final. Graf previously triumphed over Etsuko Inoue, Nathalie Herreman, Terry Phelps, Rosalind Fairbank-Nideffer, Helena Sukova and Gabriela Sabatini.
After the match. Steffi Graf said that she did not give up, which was the most important thing.
"I was trying to go for it and didn't let up, and that was the most important thing," the German said.
Navratilova had previously claimed that Graf did not find any pleasure in tennis and was used to winning in a mechanical way. The German responded to her rival's claims by saying that someone who didn't enjoy tennis would not be playing.
Graf also said that while she liked tennis, she wouldn't be bothered if her admiration for the game was not visible.
"I think that someone who doesn't enjoy the sport wouldn't be on the court anymore," Steffi Graf said. "I like it very much, but if it doesn't show, I don't care."
Graf's triumph at the 1989 US Open was her second at the New York Major. She won the Major another three times in 1993, 1995 and 1996.
Steffi Graf and Martina Navratilova squared off against each other in nine Grand Slam matches
Steffi Graf and Martina Navratilova managed to forge a competitive rivalry despite their 13-year age gap.
The two locked horns in 18 matches, nine of those coming at Grand Slams. The first match between them came in the semifinals of the 1985 US Open, with Navratilova winning 6-2, 6-3. The American came out on top 6-1, 6-7(3), 7-6(8) in the same stage of the New York Major in 1986.
The two faced one another in three Grand Slam finals in 1987, with Graf winning her maiden Major by beating Navratilova in the French Open. The American, however, triumphed at Wimbledon and the US Open.
Steffi Graf defeated Martina Navratilova in the next three Grand Slam meetings between the two, all of them being finals. However, the latter came out on top in their last Major clash in the semifinals of the 1992 US Open. The final meeting between Graf and Navratilova came in the final of the 1994 Pan Pacific Open, with the German triumphing 6-2, 6-4.