Chris Evert says Rafael Nadal's run in Rome shows he has hit top gear on clay, claims Novak Djokovic can win the most Grand Slams
18-time Grand Slam winner Chris Evert recently spoke to La Gazzetta dello Sport about a host of topics ranging from Rafael Nadal's form on clay this year to how his rivalry with Novak Djokovic compares to that between her and Martina Navratilova.
Chris Evert said Rafael Nadal's run to the title at this year's Italian Open had made him the favorite to win the French Open for an unprecedented 14th time.
"In Rome, he proved to have found the feeling with the clay, in the three out of five matches he still seems invulnerable to me. He is my first favorite," Chris Evert said.
The American said Novak Djokovic was the second favorite after Rafael Nadal. Evert also went on to claim that the Serb will hold the record for the most Grand Slams by the end of his career.
Djokovic is currently on 18 Slams, two behind Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
"Then comes Djokovic, who in any case by the end of his career will have won the most Grand Slams of all because he is competitive on three surfaces." Chris Evert said.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal are phenomenal, but Martina and I created the perfect mix between two great rivals: Chris Evert
The American was then asked to draw parallels between the Rafael Nadal-Novak Djokovic rivalry and her own with Martina Navratilova. While the rivalry between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal has spanned 57 matches, Evert and Navratilova faced each other 80 times, with Navratilova leading the overall head-to-head 43–37.
Evert described Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal as "phenomenal" but said her rivalry with Navratilova was a perfect blend of contrasting styles and personas.
"Ours reached 80 games, so we are still ahead!" Evert said with a smile. "They are two phenomenal, but Martina and I were so different in style and character that we created the perfect mix between two great rivals."
Evert was also asked to weigh in on Naomi Osaka's situation. World No. 2 Osaka withdrew from the 2021 French Open on Monday amid controversy surrounding her decision to boycott press conferences at the tournament.
Evert said she was glad social media did not exist during her time and that she didn't envy the fact that the current generation of players are always in the limelight.
"Our luck was that there were no social networks at the time: can you imagine how they would have dissected our lives? And instead, we were able to handle ourselves fairly quietly. I don't envy today's girls, 24 hours always in the spotlight," Evert said.
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