Evert–Navratilova Rivalry

The Evert–Navratilova rivalry was a tennis rivalry in the 1970s and 1980s between Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova, widely regarded as two of the greatest tennis players of all time. It is considered to be one of the greatest rivalries in tennis history and sports in general. The pair contested 80 matches between 1973 and 1988 (60 of which were finals), with Navratilova leading the overall head-to-head 43–37 and 36–24 in finals.

In the 12 years from the introduction of the WTA rankings in November 1975 until August 1987, one of the two held the top spot in all but 23 weeks, switching multiple times between 1978 and 1985. More specifically, in the first 615 weeks of the WTA rankings they collectively held the No. 1 ranking for 592 weeks, Navratilova at 332 weeks and Evert at 260 weeks. Such was their dominance over other players, that for the period 1977-1987 when the two rivals were first ranked No.1 & No.2 (and generally No.1 & No.2 for the entire ten year period), only three times was any other player able to beat them both back-to-back in the same tournament: Evonne Goolagong Cawley at the 1978 Virginia Slims of Boston (SF Navratilova 7-6 7-6/F Evert 4-6 6-1 6-4); Tracy Austin at the 1979 U.S. Open (SF Navratilova 7-5 7-5/F Evert 6-4 6-3); and Hana Mandlíková at the 1985 U.S. Open (SF Evert 4-6 6-2 6-3/F Navratilova 7-6 1-6 7-6). From the 1981 Australian Open to the 1985 Wimbledon Championships, the duo won a record 15 consecutive major singles titles. From the 1982 Australian Open to the 1987 US Open, they won 21 of 24 major singles titles and at least one of them appeared in each of those 24 finals.

Evert and Navratilova encountered each other most often on the faster court surfaces ( grass and indoors), where Navratilova's offensive serve-and-volley style of play gave her the upper hand over Evert's counter-attacking baseline approach. Evert enjoyed more success in the rivalry on hard courts and especially on clay courts. Navratilova led Evert 10–5 on grass, 9–7 on outdoor hard courts, and 21–14 on indoor courts, but Evert led 11–3 on clay courts. Evert led their head-to-head in three-set match wins 15–14, but Navratilova led 29–22 in straight-set encounters. Navratilova was most dominant in encounters in majors, leading 14–8 overall and 10–4 in finals. Navratilova had the upper hand in their head-to-head played over nine seasons (1979, 1981–88), whereas Evert led for each of the first six years of their rivalry (1973–78).

Grand Slam matches

Head-to-head breakdown

* All matches: (80) Navratilova 43–37
* All finals: (60) Navratilova 36–24
* Grand Slam matches: Navratilova 14–8
* Grand Slam finals: Navratilova 10–4
* Grand Slam semifinals: Tied 4–4
* WTA Tour Championships finals: Navratilova 2–1
* Non-Grand Slam & Non-WTA Tour Championships finals: Navratilova 24–20
* Three-set matches: Evert 15–14
* Straight-set matches: Navratilova 29–22

Results on each surface

* Hard courts: Tied 8–8
* Clay courts: Evert 11–3
* Grass courts: Navratilova 10–5
* Carpet courts: Navratilova 22–13

List of all matches

WTA, Fed Cup, and Grand Slam main draw results included.)

Martina Navratilova leads the head-to-head 43–37. Walkovers are not counted as official wins or losses.

Singles: 80

Evert 37 – Navratilova 43

Grand Slam performance timeline comparison

For all players in their era see: Tennis performance timeline comparison (women)

1971–1977

* The Australian Open was held twice in 1977, in January (J) and December (D).

1978–1984

1985–1991

1992–2006

WTA rankings

Year-end ranking timeline

Evert retired in September 1989 after the US Open, at which time she was ranked world No. 4.

See also

* List of tennis rivalries
* Grand Slam (tennis)
*Chris Evert career statistics
* Martina Navratilova career statistics
*Unmatched

References

External links

International Tennis Federation (ITF) player head to head

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evert-Navratilova Rivalry
Chris Evert
Martina Navratilova
Tennis rivalries
Sports rivalries in the United States
1970s in sports
1980s in sports