“I think the beauty of it was that it was an upset, I'd beaten Martina Navratilova" - When Chris Evert recalled her final Grand Slam win
Chris Evert won 18 Grand Slam singles titles in her glittering career. Her last Major came at the French Open in 1986.
Evert was seeded second at that tournament, and she made it to the final by defeating Hana Mandlikova 6-1, 6-1 in the semifinals. In the summit clash she was up against Martina Navratilova, who was at the peak of her powers at that point.
Navratilova took the opening set 6-2 but Evert bounced back to win the next two sets 6-3, 6-3 and claim a record seventh French Open title. This was her 18th and final Grand Slam triumph.
Chris Evert reflected on winning the 1986 French Open while talking to the tournament's official website in 2021. The American, who was 31 in 1986, claimed that winning the clay-court Major was an upset since not many expected someone at her age to lift the trophy.
“I think the beauty of it was that it was an upset, I'd beaten Martina. Everybody had counted me out, I think, as far as winning another Grand Slam, that was the consensus. Martina was pretty dominant around those years. So the nice thing was just kind of surprising myself that I could still win a Grand Slam at that late age," Chris Evert said.
The American also claimed that her win over Navratilova in the 1985 French Open gave her the confidence to defeat the Czech-American, who was dominating women's tennis at the time.
“That ‘85 win sort of opened up the door,” Evert said. “I regained my confidence, because I'd lost to her like 13 times in a row and then I beat her at Miami and then I beat her in ‘85 at the French. Then the next year I beat her at the French and I just felt like I could beat her. The confidence was there.”
Chris Evert won seven French Open titles
Chris Evert won seven French Open titles, which is more than any other woman in the tournament's history. The American's win in 1986 saw her surpass Suzanne Lenglen's tally of six titles at Roland Garros.
Evert's first title at the clay-court Major came in 1974, where she beat Olga Morozova 6-1, 6-2 in the final. She then successfully defended her crown by beating Martina Navratilova in 1975.
The American did not compete at the French Open for the next three years before winning in 1979 and 1980, beating Wendy Turnbull and Virginia Ruzici in the title clash respectively. Evert defeated Mima Jausovec in the 1983 final before triumphing in 1985 and 1986.
Her final appearance at the French Open came in 1988, suffering a third-round defeat at the hands of Arantxa Sanchez Vicario.