“I’ve known Chris longer than anybody else in my life, and so it is for her,” Martina Navratilova once shared about her lifelong connection with best friend Chris Evert. Remarkably, their bond has stood strong for over 50 years, outlasting most marriages nowadays. Through fierce on-court battles, personal highs and lows, and even fighting cancer side by side, their friendship has only deepened, without ever leaning too heavily into sentimentality. And recently, as the Miami Open unfolds, Navratilova shines a light on the candid and unforgettable history they created together on those very courts. However, what exactly did she reveal?
In 1973, teenagers Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert became friends, but their paths diverged as they pursued their own extraordinary careers. They both climbed to the pinnacle of professional tennis by constantly standing in each other’s way. Their rivalry was electric (80 H2H matches, including 60 finals) and they captivated the world with their contrasting styles and fierce determination. Yet, after 15 years of intense battles, they found themselves perfectly balanced: 18 GS titles apiece.
Evert’s 1989 and Navratilova’s 1994 retirements from singles competition marked the culmination of not only equivalent championship wins but also a significant evolution of their mutual regard. Their rivalry extended beyond the personal realm! Fast forward to today, as the Miami Open takes center stage in the USA, Navratilova took a heartfelt detour down memory lane. She revisited the very first final of the tournament, a match that happened 40 years ago but still lives vividly in her heart.
Recently, the popular X account ‘Tennis TV’ lit up fans’ timelines by sharing a nostalgic video featuring both former and current tennis stars reflecting on iconic moments from the ongoing Miami Open. Captioned “Serena & Venus’ first final The iguana…and the first ever Fedal Players react to some of the greatest @MiamiOpen moments in the tournament’s 40-year history…#MiamiOpen” the clip stirred up memories across generations.
Serena & Venus’ first final
The iguana
…and the first ever Fedal
Players react to some of the greatest @MiamiOpen moments in the tournament’s 40-year history…#MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/HDek6zNLqb
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) March 26, 2025
In the video, Martina Navratilova also was seen during her legendary first final against Chris Evert: a match that set the tone for one of the greatest rivalries in sports history. Reacting to the clip, Martina shared candidly, “Serve and volley, what a surprise. Oh nice volley. I covered the net like a blanket. I had to battle to wind, Chris and the crowd and ended up winning, so I was pretty happy about that,” giving fans a taste of the emotions behind that unforgettable moment. Anyway, how was that very first final?
The Miami Open, now celebrating its ‘40th anniversary’ in 2025, holds a special place in tennis history, and it all began with Martina Navratilova. In 1985, during the inaugural edition of what was then called the “Lipton International Players Championships”, Navratilova, at the height of her dominance, powered her way through the draw, dropping just 1 set en route to the final. There, she faced none other than her fiercest rival, Chris Evert. With precision and power, Navratilova outclassed the second seed 6-2, 6-4, etching her name as the tournament’s 1st-ever women’s singles champion.
But Evert, the ultimate competitor in professional tennis and a Florida native, would not be denied for long. Just a year later, she returned stronger and determined to claim the crown on home soil. With flawless form, Evert surged past top contenders, including Kathy Jordan and Kathy Rinaldi, without dropping a set, and in the final, she toppled rising star Steffi Graf 6-4, 6-2, finally lifting the Miami title.
Moreover, beyond their professional and personal interactions on the court, Navratilova also recounted the circumstances of their first encounter during a tournament.
“No idea who I was” Navratilova opened up about how she met with Chris Evert
Chris Evert once admitted she couldn’t quite recall the first time she crossed paths with Martina Navratilova — the woman who would transform from her fiercest rival into her closest confidant. But Navratilova remembers it like a snapshot frozen in time. During her first professional tournament in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, back in 1973, young Martina spotted veteran umpire Frank Hammond and, just beyond, Evert casually immersed in a game of backgammon. Having first read about Evert in World Tennis Magazine at the age of 12, Navratilova simply offered a shy greeting and continued, unaware that history was about to be made.
“I remember better than Chris I think, because for her I was just some youngster walking by. But she did say hello. But she had no idea who I was. The S&H Green Stamps, the USLTA tour — because I was not allowed to play the Virginia Slim Tour, which was what I really wanted to play, but the federation wouldn’t let me,” Navratilova added.
After they concluded their careers and the dust settled, Navratilova and Evert each won an impressive total of 36 Grand Slam titles, but what they truly gained was a lifelong and unbreakable friendship. In 2022, when Evert was diagnosed with “Stage 1C” ovarian cancer, one of her first calls was to Navratilova. Touched deeply, Martina reached for a “Cartier necklace” Evert had gifted her years earlier, wearing it as a quiet sign of solidarity.
Months later, fate reversed their roles when Navratilova herself faced a cancer battle. Yet, like always, both champions emerged victorious: not only surviving but continuing to thrive, side by side, courtside, and beyond. And, their friendship stands as one of the most inspiring chapters in modern tennis.
The post “Had to Battle the Wind, Chris (Evert), and the Crowd”—Martina Navratilova Spills the Untold Drama of Her Rivalry With BFF appeared first on EssentiallySports.
