‘I’m Holding On to It’ – Martina Navratilova Remembers Precious Gift From Chris Evert As She Fights Cancer

Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova have had one of the most iconic rivalries of all time in the history of tennis, let alone women’s game. It was a key feature during the 1970s and 1980s when both of them were at the pinnacle of success. The pair competed against each other for mind-boggling 80 times on the WTA tour, of which 60 meetings came in the final.

Recently Chris Evert announced that she was struggling with ovarian cancer, and Martina Navratilova shared her thoughts about the issue. She appreciated Evert’s resilience and seemed confident that Evert will surely be able to beat cancer and emerge victorious, just as she did throughout her tennis career.

DIVE DEEPER: ‘She’s Hanging in There’ – Martina Navratilova Gives an Update on Chris Evert’s Battle With Cancer

Martina Navratilova says Chris Evert is a champion on and off the court

Chris Evert is one of the greatest ambassadors of the sport. She was not only the World No. 1 for a significant amount of time but also won 18 Grand Slam singles titles, during her career! She is still quite active on social media and is often seen tweeting about recent incidents taking place in the tennis fraternity.

Also read: ‘The Umpire Was Instructed Not to Say My Name’ – Martina Navratilova on the Insane Crowd Support When She Visited Home Country Alongside Chris Evert

Her great rival Navratilova spoke about their friendship off the court and their rivalry on it. Both of them alternatively occupied the top position on the WTA rankings for quite some time. They have also been on the same team representing USA, in several tournaments like the Hopman Cup.

She also was wearing a necklace given to her by evert, and it seemed like an emotional piece of jewelry for Navratilova. Evert gifted Navratilova the necklace on account of her 60th birthday.

Speaking with Andy Cohen on the show Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, Navratilova said, “She is a champion on and off the court. Keeping fingers crossed. She gave me this necklace on my 60th birthday. I’m holding on to it. She will be alright. She is as tough as it can get,”. 

Evert informed the world about her diagnosis through a tweet, in January. She said that it was discovered as a result of a routine preventive hysterectomy. She also shared a link to the story co-written with journalist Chris McKendry, about coming to terms with the diagnosis.

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