Martina Navratilova -- Simply Amazing!

[Ron Thorne]

I realize that there's already a tennis thread, but this story deserves a separate thread, in my opinion.





Navratilova rolls back the years
By Martin Johnson (Filed: 22/06/2004)


It was, as ever, the peaked cap and functional shorts for the woman who dates back to the era of Teddy Tinling dresses and frilly knickers, but Martina Navratilova could have been wearing a cocktail gown and high heels and still have won her opening singles match on Court No 2 yesterday.

	Martina Navratilova: beat Catalina Castano 6-0, 6-1 in 46 minutes

The 47-year-old, who was given a wild card into the singles purely because she wanted some extra practice for the doubles, dispatched 24-year-old Catalina Castano, of Colombia, 6-0, 6-1 in 46 minutes of the kind of tennis which probably tells you all you need to know about the depth of the women's game. If the world's 102nd-ranked male had gone up against a grey-haired old fossil ranked, as Navratilova is, 700, the embarrassment would have been the other way.

The fear that some women tennis players might now be going down the pharmaceutical route was raised this year by Nathalie Tauziat, the former French player, when her comment that "you don't need a degree in medicine to see that some of the girls have transformed themselves overnight" raised the spectre of the first bearded lady to win a grand slam. However, watching someone as clueless as Castano yesterday made you wonder whether - for women's tennis at least - performance-enhancing drugs ought to be made compulsory rather than banned.

Yesterday's match lasted for almost 1.75 hours but only because of a 50-minute rain break, and a prolonged search for one of those string-plucking instruments that had fallen off Castano's racket. There were also smaller delays while Navratilova toyed with whether to wear her cap back to front or the right way round, which was just about the only problem she was obliged to grapple with in the entire match.

Navratilova's request for a similar wild card in the French Open at Roland Garros led to a 6-1, 6-3 defeat by Gisela Dulko, but there was never the slightest danger yesterday that she could be accused - as she was at the French - of pinching a spot that someone else had merited. Castano herself got into Wimbledon via her world ranking, which also tells you a lot about the state of British women's tennis, as all seven home-grown entrants here have had to rely on an All England Club invitation.

Some people wondered whether the nine-time Wimbledon champion would have won so easily without the rain, as it arrived just at the time when one might have expected her to start slowing down a bit - although in truth Castano was so hopeless it scarcely mattered. The Colombian was even aced by a serve measured at 73mph, which is the equivalent of being passed on the motorway by a Reliant Robin.

Navratilova goes back so far at Wimbledon that Christine Truman - the first player she faced here in 1973 - was next door on Court 3 watching her daughter, Amanda Janes. Martina's journey to the net was perhaps a tad slower than it was in her heyday but once she got there, she barely missed a volley. Not that she was required to volley that often, as the mere sight of her was generally enough for Casano to dunk it into the net.

The Colombian did not even have a game point until it was 0-6, 0-5, and she then saved four match points with an incongruous late flourish.

Navratilova, who yesterday became the oldest player to win a singles match at Wimbledon since the Open era began in 1968, has been around long enough to remember also when she was not very popular. Especially when she kept beating Chris Evert. The chubby Plain Jane from the Eastern Bloc sticking it to the glamour girl from Florida was not what the Centre Court crowd had in mind but, after Evert retired, grudging respect turned to admiration, and admiration, finally, to affection.

Navratilova enjoyed her rapport with the spectators yesterday, saying: "Playing tennis is for the fans, not for anyone else. It's a game. People forget that. People take it too seriously. I never have, and I never will." Which suggests she might even be back next year.

She said: "Some people want to know why I am still doing this, and other people just think it's great that I still am. So why am I? I guess because I can. It's not about old age. Or being young. It's just about enjoying what you do. My message is: 'If you don't enjoy what you do, do something else.' "

It's a bit easier, of course, to do something you enjoy when you get paid at Martina's rates, and yesterday's win guaranteed her a minimum £11,810 to add to her career earnings (not counting endorsements) of $21,078,570 (about £11.5 million). Just as well, really, as Martina was banging on yesterday about how much it costs to be on the circuit.

"Do I still need to play tennis? Good God no. I'm losing money by still playing. You got two or three people travelling with you, and you have to pay their salary, their expenses, hotels. I'm lucky. Now I get my hotel paid. The rest you have to pay for. The overheads are phenomenal." Ye gods. If she makes it much further, we'll have to organise a whip-round.

URL: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cg...843EDT0383.DTL

[Ron Thorne]

To be honest, I didn't care for the tone of portions of the above article, so here's another view for some balance.

She's still got it! At 47, Navratilova wins at Wimbledon - HOWARD FENDRICH, AP Tennis Writer
Monday, June 21, 2004


(06-21) 15:48 PDT WIMBLEDON, England (AP) --

The woman Martina Navratilova beat in her 1973 Wimbledon debut was back at the All England Club on Monday to watch her daughter's first-round match.

Navratilova, all of 47, was back, too. Except she was playing -- yes, playing! -- on the adjacent court. And, oh, how she performed.

Charging the net at every opportunity, snapping volleys, even throwing in an ace for good measure, Navratilova beat 24-year-old Catalina Castano of Colombia 6-0, 6-1 Monday to become the oldest woman since 1922 to win a match at Wimbledon.

It was her first singles competition here in a decade, and it was as if she never left.

"When people say, 'Why are you doing it?' I guess the answer is: 'Because I still can.' Bottom line," said Navratilova, whose 18 Grand Slam singles titles include a record nine at Wimbledon.

She won 30 of 40 points at the net with serve-and-volley tennis that's a dying art. Valuing placement over power, Navratilova cut volleys at angles a pool shark would appreciate, spun slices that died at Castano's feet, and never let her opponent get within a point of winning a game through the first 11.

"This definitely is a deja vu," Navratilova said.

Goran Ivanisevic also must have felt that way. Playing at Wimbledon for the first time since winning the 2001 championship, Ivanisevic knocked off No. 31 Mikhail Youznhy 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-2. Hounded by injuries to his shoulder, elbow and knee, Ivanisevic was just 2-9 this season and will retire after Wimbledon.

Talking about Navratilova, the 32-year-old Croat said: "I cannot compare myself. She is other level. She is from other planet."

On a rainy Day 1, four other past Wimbledon champions won in straight sets: Venus Williams (the winner in 2000-01), Lindsay Davenport (1999), Roger Federer (2003) and Lleyton Hewitt (2002). Williams, trying to reach a fifth straight final at the grass-court Grand Slam, beat Marie-Gayanay Mikaelian 6-3, 6-0, compiling 26 winners to only 11 unforced errors.

Williams dismissed the idea that Navratilova's victory over the 102nd-ranked Castano reflects poorly on the quality of play on the WTA Tour.

"It reflects well on Martina," Williams said. "She's in wonderful shape. She understands the game probably more than ever at this point."

After dominating Castano, Navratilova left Court 2 to walk the 50 yards across the grounds and up a flight of stairs to the locker room. She was besieged by boys, girls, men and women who were collecting autographs, snapping photos and using video cameras.

When Castano was 17 and playing in the junior French Open, she sidled up to Navratilova and sheepishly asked if they could have a photo taken together, just like any other fan. Now Castano played her at Wimbledon, a loss she'll never forget.

Navratilova recalled her first match at the All England Club, a victory over Christine Janes, whose daughter Amanda lost to No. 11 Ai Sugiyama on Court 3 Monday.

"The older you get, the worse it gets," Navratilova said. "I was much more nervous today than I was for that first one."

It helped that Navratilova wasn't exactly facing Steffi Graf.

Navratilova owns 167 singles titles, Castano zero. Navratilova was ranked No. 1 for 331 weeks in the 1970s and 1980s; Castano reached No. 97 for two weeks. Navratilova is 144-13 on grass, the best mark ever; Castano is 0-4.

Still, Castano said: "It's almost like playing my mom."

Navratilova retired in 1994, then returned as a doubles player in 2000. She heard complaints when she played singles at a 2002 Wimbledon tuneup event (beating a player ranked 22nd). Young players wondered aloud whether it wouldn't be better for the ol' left-hander to enjoy retirement rather than take a spot in the draw.

Similar concerns were voiced when Navratilova was given a French Open wild card last month and lost in the first round to Gisela Dulko, a 19-year-old Argentine who just happens to be her next opponent at Wimbledon.

"Are they still saying it?" Navratilova said. "I don't think so."

Addressing critics who wondered if she can compete, Navratilova said: "You guys didn't believe me. Now do you believe me?"

She's never let others dictate her thoughts or actions. At 18, she left her parents and defected from Czechoslovakia. For years, she was made to feel like an outsider because of her homosexuality and candidness. Sponsors stayed away.

Nowadays, in her final season, it's not about winning, losing or breaking records.

"I've been saying this all along: Playing tennis is for the fans. It's not for anyone else," Navratilova said. "It's for the people to enjoy it."

The spectators, Navratilova and Ivanisevic clearly reveled in their returns.

"I won my Wimbledon. I just came here to say, 'Goodbye' and have fun," Ivanisevic said.

He wagged a finger at the ball when one drop shot didn't clear the net, pretended to argue a line call before waving his hand to let everyone know he was kidding, and blew kisses or lifted his arms to give thanks after five net-cords went his way.

Navratilova flexed her biceps to the crowd after she laced an ace in the second set's opening game, drawing laughter. When the match ended, she sat back in her chair and chuckled, shaking her head.

[crawjo]

Aced by a 73 mph serve? The fix is in.

[Ron Thorne]

Originally Posted by crawjo

Aced by a 73 mph serve? The fix is in.

Since I didn't witness that serve, I certainly can't comment. Apparently it was effective, however. Spin does funny things to balls as well as brains.

[Jon Abbey]

Martina Hingis, who was NAMED AFTER NAVRATILOVA, was the commentator in the booth today, since her career is over even though she's like 25 years younger, pretty ridiculous.

plus, Martina was supposed to play the 23 seed next round, Dokic, but Dokic got upset, so Martina has a better chance to win again.

(edit: just saw that it's the girl she lost to at the French Open, I still like Martina's chances)

[jesus marion joseph]

Originally Posted by Ron Thorne

Still, Castano said: "It's almost like playing my mom."

Ouch.

Originally Posted by crawjo

Aced by a 73 mph serve? The fix is in.

Really. Even I could have returned that.............

[Ron Thorne]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ron Thorne
Still, Castano said: "It's almost like playing my mom."

Originally Posted by jesus marion joseph

Ouch.

Ouch? "Mom" whupped her ass 6-0, 6-1.

Yeah, and if she keeps up with that smart mouth "mom" might whup her ass off the court as well.

[Ron Thorne]

Great Champions: Martina Navratilova

Martina Navratilova
Martina Navratilova was chosen as Wimbledon’s greatest ladies’ singles champions in a poll of BBC television viewers held during the 2003 Championships. She was far ahead of her nearest rival, Steffi Graf.

It is a title she well deserves because you can almost be overwhelmed by what she has achieved. The lady has to have the biggest trophy display cabinet among players.

She has won a record number of nine singles titles, spanning three decades and involving some of the fiercest rivalries in women’s tennis history. Generation-hopping with such success is difficult to achieve.

And she entered a fourth decade at the 2003 Championships when she become the oldest ever Grand Slam champion at 46 years 261 days after winning the Mixed Doubles title with Leander Paes. Earlier in the year she become the first player in Open era to win every Slam event available when she won the 2003 Australian Open Mixed Doubles title also with Leander Paes (ie. Ladies' Singles, Ladies' Doubles and Mixed Doubles in all four Grand Slam events). In total she has won 58 Grand Slam titles in all.

Navratilova's victory at the 2003 Championships alongside Paes also meant that she equalled Billie Jean King's record number of 20 Wimbledon titles.

But what makes Navratilova “greatness” are less tangible factors. She has humility, honesty and vulnerability. People can relate to those traits which are often disguised or discarded by other superstars. She is an approachable icon with a smile that lights up a court or a room.

Navratilova has had to come through personal trauma. The Czech defected from her native land to settle in the United States as a sensitive teenager, a little heartbroken, a little lonely. A junk food diet and the effect it had on her body reflected her inner turmoil. Later, she came under pressure concerning her sexuality.

But she has been able to hold the negatives at bay and combined her pragmatic side with her passion as a player. Her fitness regimes alone revolutionised women's tennis as she developed a powerful attacking game, full of variety and just about perfect for Wimbledon. It was certainly enough to overtake American rival Chris Evert.

She is a doer and is committed to the sport that has made her a household name. Navratilova served on the WTA and promotes her sport, offers encouragement to younger players and loves the game.

She said after her doubles triumph with Paes: "I didn't think about winning when I first started playing, I just wanted to play. I just thought about competing, see how good I can still play." That's pure Navratilova.

The late Ted Tinling, the famous dress designer and ambassador for tennis, saw other women’s tennis greats Margaret Court, Maureen Connolly and, in the 1920s, Suzanne Lenglen. He said of Navratilova: "I never thought I would ever see anyone who could replace Suzanne Lenglen as the greatest player and personality in my lifetime... but now I have."

Written by Mike Donovan

---

MARTINA NAVRATILOVA Singles Champion: 1978, 1979, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990
Singles Runner-up: 1988, 1989, 1994
Doubles Champion: 1976, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986
Doubles Runner-up: 1977, 1985
Mixed Doubles Champion: 1985, 1993, 1995, 2003
Mixed Double Runner-up: 1986

[Enforcer]

Fantastic story. I read about it yesterday and it caught me off guard. I didn't realize she had been competing at all, so to see her name mentioned at Wimbledon surprised me (I don't follow tennis very closely). Great for her. I hope she wins another round.

Larry

[Richardo Caerleoni]

Ron ...I know nothing (Nuttin') about tennis...but I saw an interview with her...Totally agree...and she is wonderful...full of joy...if only!

[Uli]

Yep, she's tough!