"This is bigger than winning a trophy" - When Chris Evert witnessed Martina Navratilova getting a standing ovation on her return to Czechoslovakia
Martina Navratilova remains one of the most admired tennis stars whose friendship with Chris Evert eclipsed their rivalry that once captured the imagination of the sporting world.
Eleven years after Navratilova defected from communist Czechoslovakia to the United States in 1975, she traveled back to the country of her birth while representing the USA in the Federation Cup.
Evert, who was part of the USA team that took on a strong Czechoslovakian side, recalled how the home crowd gave the Prague-born player a standing ovation during an interaction with Oprah Winfrey in 2008.
"When they brought Martina out, we were interested to see how the crowd would react. And I thought to myself, I am so honored to be here and experiencing this because this transcends tennis. This is bigger than hitting a tennis ball and winning a trophy," Evert recalled.
Navratilova and Evert propelled the USA to a 3-0 win over a strong Czechoslovakian side that had Hana Mandlikova and Helena Sukova in their ranks. Pam Shriver partnered Navratilova in the doubles encounter.
The American legend, whose biography Martina was published in 1985, opined after the Federation Cup win that the story of her homecoming would have been apt as the final chapter of the book.
"Maybe I wrote my book too soon. This certainly would have been a great last chapter. I've enjoyed living this week, and I know I'll enjoy remembering it. The whole experience has been beyond my wildest dreams," Navratilova said, according to Washington Times.
The Martina Navratilova-Chris Evert rivalry
Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert shared one of the most legendary rivalries in the history of the game. The former won 43 of the 80 matches against the latter, which marginally puts her in the lead in the head-to-head.
While Navratilova dominated on grass, winning 10 of the 15 encounters the two played on the surface, Evert triumphed a whopping 11 times on clay, allowing her rival just three victories. The contest was even on hardcourts, with both players registering eight wins apiece.
On November 13, 1988 in Chicago, @Martina defeated Chris Evert, 6-2, 6-2, to claim the 80th and final match of their legendary rivalry. Her win enabled Navratilova to finish with a 43-37 record. 🙌
#OnThisDay https://t.co/uFCJzMYOAG
Navratilova did have the upper hand in the big matches, with head-to-head stats for the finals reading 36-24 in favor of the Czech-American. The same held true in the title rounds of the Grand Slams, with Evert managing to win just 24 of the 60 finals that the pair were part of.