‘I Wanted Crowds to Like Me More’ – When Martina Navratilova Braved Her Heart Out on Not Receiving the Same Amount of Love as Chris Evert

The former World No 1, Martina Navratilova, with her muscular physique, used to dominate some of the best athletes on the WTA tour. Whether it is defeating Billie Jean King or Steffi Graf, the former Czech-American tennis player has always stunned the fans with her performances. Notably, Navratilova defeated another great athlete of that era, Chris Evert.

Additionally, they shared one of the fiercest rivalries on the WTA tour. However, Navratilova once became so dominant that tennis fans started regarding her as the villain. But, Navratilova never wanted to be the villain on the tour. As a result, she once revealed she wanted to be more like her fiercest rival, Evert.

Martina Navratilova once expressed her desire to be like Chris Evert

A plethora of tennis fans is aware of Martina Navratilova’s incredible achievements during her stellar journey. However, few people are aware of the former Czech-American tennis player’s difficulties with criticism along the way. During her prime, Navratilova once became so dominant that people started regarding her as the villain rather than looking up to her as an idol.

Notably, she also received a lot of backlash because of her dominant victories over her rival, Chris Evert. Evert was also regarded as one of the best of that era. However, Navratilova, when she was a young girl on the tour, once expressed her desire to be more like her fierce rival, Evert. She revealed, “I wanted to be more like Chris because I wanted crowds to like me more.”

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The 18-time singles Grand Slam champion went on to say, “I played tennis in an exciting way … and I thought I was just as good a human being. Chris was such a perfect girl next door, I just didn’t know what I was up against … The contrast was pretty great.”

Navratilova faced criticism because of her muscular physique

During her illustrious journey, the former Czech-American tennis player achieved a plethora of titles. It includes her 18 singles Grand Slam titles during the tour. However, despite her achievements, Martina Navratilova was criticized for being muscular and dominating her opponents on the WTA tour. Additionally, Navratilova had to face isolation during her journey because of her sexuality.

Due to her sexual orientation, the former Wimbledon champion had to keep to herself in the closet. However, Navratilova fought all these barriers to reveal her sexual identity during that era. Since then, Navratilova, as a brave leader, has raised awareness about the LGBTQ community.

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