Navratilova, Martina

Czech tennis player who became a naturalized US citizen in 1981. The most outstanding woman player of the 1980s, she won 58 Grand Slam victories, including 18 singles titles. She won the Wimbledon singles title a record nine times, including six in succession 1982–87.

Career highlights


Wimbledon
singles: 1978–79, 1982–87, 1990; doubles: 1976, 1979, 1981–84, 1986; mixed: 1985, 1993, 1995, 2003

US Open
singles: 1983–84, 1986–87; doubles: 1977–78, 1980, 1983–87, 1989–90; mixed: 1985, 1987

French Open
singles: 1982, 1984; doubles: 1975, 1982, 1984–88; mixed: 1974, 1985

Australian Open
singles: 1981, 1983, 1985; doubles: 1980, 1982–85, 1987–89; mixed: 2003

ITF world champion
1979, 1982–86

Fed Cup
(with former Czechoslovakia) 1975; (with USA) 1982, 1986, 1989

Tournament wins
341

Navratilova won her first Wimbledon title in 1976 (doubles with Chris Evert). Her total of 58 Grand Slam titles was second only to Margaret Court, who won 62. Her first Grand Slam win was mixed doubles at the 1974 French Championship (with Ivan Molina, Colombia). By winning the Australian Open mixed doubles title with Leander Paes in 2003, Navratilova completed a sweep of all 12 Grand Slam titles, and, at the age of 46, also became the oldest player ever to win a major tournament. She also won the Wimbledon mixed doubles title in 2003, her last Grand Slam triumph, which brought her level with Billie Jean King's record of 20 Wimbledon titles.

She became a tennis coach in 1997, and made her debut as captain of the defending champion US Fed Cup team.