"To my great friend";"Thanks for helping me get to this birthday" - Chris Evert & Martina Navratilova exchange niceties on latter's 67th birthday
Martina Navratilova, who turned 67 on October 18, was greeted among others by one-time rival and longtime friend Chris Evert.
Evert, who took on Navratilova a whopping 80 times during the course of their illustrious careers asserted that the latter continued to inspire her with her "strength, resilience, and principles."
The 68-year-old American stated on social media that she was appreciative of their friendship while also adding that Navratilova, an 18-time singles Grand Slam champion, had a huge heart.
Her tweet on X read:
"Happy birthday to my great friend @Martina who continues to inspire me with her strength, resilience, and principles... You've got a huge heart, Martina, so appreciate of our friendship"
The affinity between the tennis legends came to the fore even as Navratilova responded to the post by stating that Evert's wish meant the world to her.
Martina Navratilova won her maiden professional singles title in 1974. She won nine singles titles at Wimbledon from 1978 until 1990, which included six consecutive triumphs between 1982 and 1987.
The Czech-American player also won the US Open title on four occasions from 1983 to 1987 while also reigning triumphant thrice at the Australian Open and twice at Roland Garros.
Navratilova also holds the distinction of being the oldest player to win a professional singles match in the Open era. She achieved this after a first-round win at Wimbledon in 2004 when she was aged 47 years and 8 months.
A memorable comeback while partnering Leander Paes of India also witnessed the Prague-born player breaking new ground. She became the oldest-ever champion following mixed doubles title wins during the Australian Open and at Wimbledon in 2003.
Navratilova was ranked as the WTA World No. 1 for a total of 332 weeks as compared to Steffi Graf, who remained atop the women's rankings for 377 weeks.
Navratilova announced earlier this year that she was cancer-free after having been diagnosed with HPV-related throat cancer and breast cancer. She had been diagnosed with noninvasive breast cancer back in 2010 but came through unscathed.
Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova — A rivalry for the ages
Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova dominated the women's tennis scene between 1977 and 1987.
Evert enjoyed the upper hand on clay, winning 11 matches on the red dirt while losing only three. Navratilova, on the other hand, held sway on grass, winning 10 of the 15 matches that the legendary duo played on the surface.
Interestingly, Chris Evert won five successive matches against Navratilova after the duo first squared off back in 1973 before the latter managed to notch up a win at the Virginia Slims of Washington tournament in 1975.
Navratilova held the edge when the two met for the last time in 1988, winning thrice in a row, before Evert retired a year later. Sixty of the 80 matches that were contested between the two tennis greats happened to be title rounds with Navratilova winning 36 finals.
Chris Evert managed to beat her rival in 24 finals while the overall career head-to-head record reads 43-37 in favor of Martina Navratilova.