Not all tennis rivalries end up in beautiful friendships, but some do. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal were arch-rivals for most parts of their careers, but when Fed retired at the Laver Cup in 2022, Nadal couldn’t stop himself from bursting into tears. Another similar example is the friendship between Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert who competed fiercely on the court for years but developed a great bond off the court towards the end of their careers. While we find such examples in both men’s and women’s tennis, the former American pro-Tracy Austin has a slightly different opinion.

Austin was in conversation with Steve Weissman on The Tennis Channel Live Podcast yesterday, where she talked about Chris Evert’s incredible career milestone. Forty-nine years ago on November 3, 1975, Evert became the first ever player to secure the WTA number-one ranking. Recalling the memorable day, Billie Jean King, the founder of WTA, posted one of her photos on X alongside Evert, as she wrote, “49 years ago today, on November 3, 1975, @ChrissieEvert became the first-ever No. 1 ranked player in the @WTA. She would hold the No. 1 spot for a total of 260 weeks.”

Billie Jean King was Chris Evert’s idol. Although they were from different generations, they ended up locking horns quite a few times. Interestingly, it was Evert who got the better of her idol on more occasions, as she finished with a head-to-head record of 19-7 against King. Reflecting on King’s heartwarming post for Evert, Austin said, “We have to honor Chrissie. Always so classy, always so gracious, 18 Grand Slam titles and 49th anniversary. And there is such love. Isn’t it beautiful that the top women of sports always give each other tremendous respect?” 

Austin further went on to talk about the bond between Navratilova and Evert, as she emphasized she couldn’t find many such examples in men’s tennis. “Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova as well. and Chrissie is of course going through cancer together and recently on Martina’s birthday, Chrissie went out with her. Just nice to see. Don’t always see that on top of the men’s sport,” the 61-year-old added

Evert and Navratilova were the fiercest of rivals during their time on the WTA Tour. They went head-to-head against each other a total of 80 times, 60 of which were the finals. Navratilova had the upper hand as she led the head-head-head numbers by 43-37. She won 36 out of the 60 finals as well, but the matches were almost always closely contested. Towards the end of their careers though, the rivalry evolved.

“We realized we weren’t only competitors” – Martina Navratilova on her relationship with Chris Evert

Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert have talked about their friendship numerous times in the past. One such occasion was the cancer awareness event hosted by Ralph Lauren last month, where Navratilova revealed how their rivalry turned into friendship as their careers progressed. “We have such a rich history of again competing and especially towards the end of our career we we became very very close because we realized that we weren’t only competitors we were people with feelings as well, and emotions. You’re one of my best friends and I know that I can always count on you,” the Czech legend said.

Many years after their retirement, both Navratilova and Evert were diagnosed with cancer. While Navratilova suffered throat cancer, Evert was diagnosed with Ovarian cancer. In the Ralph Lauren event, Navratilova recalled being terrified when she first heard about Evert’s diagnosis. Hardly a year later, she herself was diagnosed as well.

However, they stood by each other like a rock, and with the support of family and friends, they pulled through. Evert suffered another relapse later, but both of them are doing well now. There are several examples of rivals turning friends in tennis and sports in general, but Navratilova and Evert’s story is truly inspiring.