"We speak; I'm happy to see her with Andre Agassi" - When Monica Seles spoke about her relationship with Steffi Graf post-stabbing incident
Monica Seles once opened up about her relationship with fellow tennis legend Steffi Graf. This was after the controversial and nearly career-ending incident where Seles was stabbed by a Graf fan.
In 1993, a German man named Gunter Parche attacked Seles during her quarterfinal match against Magdalena Maleeva at the Citizen Cup in Hamburg, Germany. Parche stabbed the then-World No. 1 with a knife between her shoulder blades, leaving a 3.8 cm wound.
The motive behind the attack was later revealed to be Parche's obsession with Steffi Graf, Seles' arch-rival at the time. Parsche wanted to see Graf regain the top ranking and so decided to attack Seles.
The incident left Seles physically and emotionally affected, leading to a two-year hiatus from tennis. The nine-time Grand Slam champion eventually returned to the sport in 1995 and won her ninth and final Grand Slam title at the Australian Open the following year.
Monica Seles spoke with Sportstar in 2003 and opened up about her relationship with Steffi Graf, saying that they would always be "linked" because of the stabbing incident. It's worth mentioning that Graf visited Seles when she was hospitalized to offer her condolences.
"I don't want to go back into that," Seles said. "Her tennis career has been amazing. What can I say there? We're always going to be linked together because of that incident. Her career changed because of it, and mine changed because of it."
The 50-year-old also stated that, while she and the 22-time Grand Slam champion went their separate ways following that unfortunate day, their relationship was not ruined. Seles added that she was "happy to see Graf happy" with her husband Andre Agassi and their children — Jaden and Jaz.
"We went on different paths since that date. But the relationship didn't really end in ruins. When I see her, we speak, even if we don't talk that deep. I'm happy to see her happy with Andre and their baby," Monica Seles said.
Looking back at Monica Seles' 9 Grand Slam titles
Monica Seles won nine Grand Slam singles titles during her career, eight of which she won as a teenager while representing Yugoslavia. She won her final Major while holding American citizenship.
The former World No. 1's most successful Grand Slam tournament is the Australian Open, where she won four titles - three in a row (1991, 1992, 1993) and one in 1996. That was followed by the French Open, where she lifted the women's singles trophy thrice (1990, 1991, 1992).
Seles won the US Open twice (1991 and 1992) too. And while she never won Wimbledon, she did reach the final once in nine attempts.
The tennis legend hung up her racquet in 2008, although her last tour-level match came at the 2003 French Open.