Steffi Graf's 5 biggest rivals: From Monica Seles to Chris Evert
Steffi Graf etched her name in tennis history with her numerous accolades throughout her career. Some of her records have stood the test of time even now, and don't seem in danger of being surpassed any time soon.
Graf remains the only player, male or female, to have accomplished the Golden Calendar Slam- winning all four Major titles and an Olympic gold medal in the same season (1988). She also holds the record for most weeks at No. 1 among women at 377 weeks.
Throughout her career, Graf had many rivals. However, only a handful of them proved to be her equals in some measure. On that note, here's a look at five of her biggest rivals:
#5 - Arantxa Sanchez Vicario
Graf and Sanchez Vicario met 36 times throughout their careers, with the head-to-head being 28-8 in the German's favor. She faced the Spaniard in seven Major finals, more than any other player.
When they met for the first time in a Major final at the French Open 1989, Graf was the overwhelming favorite to win. She had won the last five Majors, while Sanchez Vicario was contesting her first Grand Slam final. The German had also won all three of their prior meetings in straight sets.
However, Sanchez Vicario pulled off a memorable upset to claim her first Major title. Graf won their next seven matches until the Spaniard stopped her in her tracks at the French Open in 1991. She beat her 6-0, 6-2 in the semifinals in one of the most one-sided losses of the German's career.
Graf continued to dictate the rivalry over the next few years, with Sanchez Vicario's next memorable win coming in the final of the US Open in 1994. She rallied from a set down to beat her rival. The German won their last four matches after that. Their last career meeting took place at Wimbledon in 1996, and she beat the Spaniard in the final to win her 20th Major title.
#4 - Gabriela Sabatini
Graf and Sabatini crossed paths 40 times during their playing days. This match-up, which kicked off in 1985, had a very lop-sided beginning as the German won their first 11 matches, though only three of those were in straight sets.
Sabatini beat Graf for the first time in 1988 to win the Virginia Slims of Florida title and followed it up with another win a month later in the semifinals at Amelia Island. The German resumed her winning ways and defeated her rival the next four times they met. All four of these meetings were very high-profile matches, the semifinal of the French Open, the Seoul Olympics and US Open finals in 1988, and the Australian Open semifinals in 1989.
Sabatini won only two of their next six matches but one of those wins was the most important of her career. She beat Graf in the final of the US Open in 1990 to win her first and only Major title. It would also be the only time she beat her at a Major throughout her career.
Sabatini made a lot of headway in their rivalry from November 1990 to April 1992 and won seven of their eight matches, including five in a row to bring the head-to-head from 20-4 to 21-11. However, Graf won their next eight matches to finish their head-to-head at 29-11.
#3 - Monica Seles
Graf was the undisputed queen of the WTA Tour when Seles debuted in the late 1980s. She also won their first three matches, including a 6-0, 6-1 beatdown at Wimbledon in 1989.
Seles snagged her first win in this match-up in the final of Berlin in 1990. She beat Graf once again a couple of weeks later in the final of the French Open to win her maiden Major title.
Graf then won in the San Antonio and Hamburg finals in 1991, while Seles had the last laugh when they faced off in the French Open final in 1992. Their next couple of meetings also took place in the championship round of Majors.
Graf defeated Seles to claim the Wimbledon title in 1992, and the latter returned the favor at the Australian Open in 1993. The head-to-head was 6-4 in the German's favor after this match.
Seles was competing in Hamburg in April 1993 when an obsessed fan of Graf stabbed her with a knife during her quarterfinal match against Magdalena Maleeva. She was 19 years old when it happened, and it sidelined her for nearly two years. She was the World No. 1 when this attack took place and had won eight Major titles.
Seles returned to the tour in 1995, and while she tasted a pretty decent level of success, she never matched the highs of before. She also won only one of her five matches against Graf after her comeback, and the rivalry concluded 10-5 in the latter's favor.
#2 - Chris Evert
Evert was the leading player on the women's tour in the 1970s and continued to remain a force to be reckoned with in the 1980s as well. The first half of that decade was defined by her rivalry with Navratilova.
When Graf was a rising young star, Evert dispatched her quite handily, and won their first six encounters, all in straight sets. The German turned the tables once she hit her stride in the mid-1980s, and won their next eight matches, with only one of them going the distance.
Despite being two of the most prolific names in the history of the sport, they only contested one Major final. That was at the Australian Open 1988, which was won by Graf.
#1 - Martina Navratilova
Navratilova was one of two players dominating the tour when Graf arrived on the scene in the early 1980s. They were more than 12 years apart in age but their rivalry, which spanned across 18 matches, was competitive until the very end.
Navratilova started strong and beat her younger rival the first three times they met, starting with a semifinal win at the US Open in 1985. Graf secured her first win in the Berlin final in 1986 but lost the next two times she faced her adversary.
Graf beat Navratilova in the semifinals of the Miami Open in 1987, and then defeated her at a Major for the first time in the French Open final a few months later. They met in the finals of Wimbledon and the US Open that year as well, and the German came up short in both of those.
Graf entered her peak from 1988 and tallied four wins in a row in this match-up from that year. She beat Navratilova in the final of Wimbledon in 1988 and in the finals of Wimbledon, US Open, and WTA Finals in 1989.
Navratilova snapped her losing skid with a win in the semifinals of the US Open 1991, and while being 34 years old as well. They met once every season over the next three years, and the head-to-head ended in a tie at 9-9 after Graf won their last match in Tokyo in 1994.