"As tough as they come" - Boris Becker hails Martina Navratilova for 'beating the devil' after tennis legend overcomes cancer for 2nd time
Boris Becker was ecstatic about Martina Navratilova's cancer remission after the tennis legend revealed that she was "cancer-free" once again.
The tennis world reacted with angst earlier this year when Navratilova announced that she was diagnosed with Stage 1 throat cancer and breast cancer. This was the second cancer diagnosis of her life, as she was also treated for early-stage breast cancer back in 2010.
Calling the sporting legend an "extraordinary woman," Becker asserted that she "beat the devil" and was "as tough as they come."
"Did you hear the good news ?!? So relieved the legend and extraordinary woman Martina beat the devil …she is as tough as they come!!!" Becker wrote on Instagram.
Martina Navratilova's welcome revelation that she was in remission was made during the course of an interaction with TalkTV host Piers Morgan.
Legendary tennis player Martina Navratilova reveals to Piers Morgan that she is cancer free, but "definitely will not be missing any check-ups."
"As far as they know, I'm cancer free."
@piersmorgan | @Martina | @TalkTV | #PMU https://t.co/soogKlKE6l
"It's very, very good. I mean, as far as they know, I am cancer-free. I still need to deal with the right breast, probably have radiation for a couple of weeks but that doesn't even count. That's more preventative than anything else and I should be good to go. It's like 99% solvable," Navratilova explained before going on to to stress that her check-ups will continue.
"I definitely will not be missing any of my check-ups, I will be diligent about it, but the prognosis is excellent, but you never know," she added.
"I was in total panic for three days thinking I may not see next Christmas" - Martina Navratilova
During the same interview, Martina Navratilova dwelt at length on how she dealt with news of the cancer diagnosis, stating that was in "total panic" not knowing if she would see "next Christmas."
The 66-year-old also disclosed to Piers Morgan that she considered a bucket-list of everything that she wanted to do if she had only a year to live.
Great to hear @Martina Navratilova is cancer free ❤️ https://t.co/IGaedNd4QG
"I was in a total panic for three days thinking I may not see next Christmas," Martina Navratilova said. “The bucket list came into my mind of all the things I wanted to do. And this may sound really shallow, but I was like, okay, ‘which kick-ass car do I really want to drive if I live like a year?’”
The Czechoslovakian player, who migrated to the United States, won a whopping 59 Grand Slam titles between 1973 and 2006 and is now a tennis analyst and broadcaster.