Former Czech-American tennis star Martina Navratilova has had one of the best tennis careers among pro tennis players. Since turning pro in 1975, she did not look back until 2006, when she finally said goodbye to tennis.

Many current and former players praise Navratilova for her longevity on the tour, as she played till 50. After seeing her dominance on the tour, a former Romanian tennis player talked about Navratilova’s chances on the men’s tour.

Ilie Nastase spoke about playing Martina Navratilova on the men’s tour

In 1985, Nastase retired from professional tennis, and before his retirement, he won 2 Grand Slam singles titles. Back in 2000, the former Romanian tennis player said, “My only regret is she didn’t play on the men’s tour. I would have liked the chance to play her.” Many fans felt that tennis became boring, and one of the bad boys of tennis, Nastase also felt that as he wanted Navratilova to try the men’s tour.

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Notably, Navratilova did not dominate the tour at the start of her career, as she struggled against her archrival, Chris Evert. After losing to Evert 6-0,6-0 in 1981, Navratilova began working with a fitness coach, Nancy Lieberman, a former basketball player, who changed her diet regime.

As a result, she reduced her body fat to 8.8%, which significantly improved her results on the tour.

Navratilova’s dominance in the 80s

After working with Renee Richards and Mike Estep, she became invincible on the tour in the 80s. From 1982 to 1990, Navratilova reached the final of the Wimbledon Championships for 9 consecutive years, winning 7. Overall, she won the Wimbledon title 9 times in her career, a record in both men’s and women’s circuits that still stands to this day.

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In 1978, the former Czech-American player won her first Grand Slam tournament at Wimbledon as well. Also, it is worth noting that she had one of the best serve and volley game, which was perfect for grass-court tennis.

In terms of her overall record, she won 18 Grand Slam singles titles along with 41 doubles and mixed doubles titles. Interestingly, she did not play singles after 1994, as she focused on the doubles and mixed doubles formats. Before retiring from singles, she won 167 singles titles, the most in the history of the sport.

In 2006, she finally bid farewell to tennis after winning the mixed doubles title at the US Open. Thus, she became the oldest player to win a Grand Slam title at 50.

Is Navratilova the greatest ever? Let us know in the comments.