"Martina Navratilova was always special to me...she was always there with her whole heart"- When Steffi Graf spoke on her admiration for the American
Tennis legend Steffi Graf once shared her deep admiration for American icon Martina Navratilova.
Graf's comments came during the 1994 Virginia Slims Championships (now WTA Finals), precisely on the night Navratilova bid farewell to singles tennis, boasting an impressive tally of 18 Grand Slam titles among many other accomplishments.
Graf, the top seed, was approached by reporters to reflect on the departure of Navratilova from the sport as the American exited the Year-end Championship in the opening round.
The German said that everyone in the sport greatly respected Navratilova due to her significant contributions and special presence.
"I think by just beinging here tonight, you could see what she means to tennis," Graf said. "To the spectators, to all the players and that doesn't happen very often I think in any sport, that all the players show so much respect to a person, and she had such a long career, and at such a high level."
"There are not many athletes you can find around in any sport in completed at any certain level like that and the way she did was a lot -- she gave a lot to the sport. She was always there with her whole heart and I think all that together has just made her so special," she added.
When asked if Martina Navratilova was "special" to her, Steffi Graf replied in the affirmative, mentioning they shared many memories and exciting matches. She also highlighted their common "passion" for Wimbledon.
"She was always special to me. I think I have a lot of memories, and a lot of things that happened between us and always some great matches," Graf said.
"I think we had a lot of things that were-- that we liked the same, for example, our passion towards Wimbledon or about competing, just playing tennis, and I think we are similar in this way. And so, I think there are a lot of things that make such passion," she added.
A look into Steffi Graf's performance in Virginia Slims Championships 1994
While Martina Navratilova exited the 1994 Virginia Slims Championships in the opening round, Graf had a marginally better performance, advancing to the quarterfinals.
Graf, the defending champion, secured victory in the first round against Dutch player Brenda Schultz. However, her journey came to an end in the last eight when France's Mary Pierce defeated her in straight sets.
Steffi Graf won the WTA Finals an impressive five times, marking her as the second-most successful player in the tournament's history. She is behind Martina Navratilova, who holds the record with eight titles.