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發表於 2005-7-9 06:58 PM
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Originally posted by 瑞比 at 2005-7-9 18:54:
Navratilova 5分
who is her?????
Born: October 18, 1956 in Prague, Czechoslovakia
Citizenship: Became a United States citizen on July 21, 1981
Handed: Left
BIOGRAPHY
As the game's most prolific winner of the open era--probably ever--Martina Navratilova, the puissant left-hander, continues to add to her record totals. Yet dabbling in doubles--she won the Wimbledon mixed in 1995 with Jonathan Stark--Marvelous Martina retired from singles at the 1994 year-end WTA Championships at Madison Square Garden in an opening-round defeat by Gabriela Sabatini, 6-4, 6-2. Thousands cheered and wept saying goodbye and thanks for the memories. She had done so much in New York, winning that prime championship eight times in singles (five times runner-up), 10 times in doubles, plus four singles and 11 doubles titles across the East River at the U.S. Open.
Nobody, ever, has had such a glittering trove of numbers. As a pro since 1973, she played the most singles tournaments (380) and matches (1,650), and won the most titles (167) and matches (1,438) with a won-lost mark of 1,438-212. She won more prize money, $20,344,061, than all but Ivan Lendl and Pete Sampras.
Her doubles feats, attesting to a grandeur of completeness, were as sparkling: played the second most tournaments (286) and the most matches (1,111), and won the most titles (162) and matches (989) with a won-lost mark of 989-122. Throw in infrequent but very positive mixed doubles: played 27 tournaments, won 8 with a won-lost of 94-19. Overall for this three-way stretcher: played the most tournaments (693) and matches (2,874); won the most titles (337) and matches (2,521) with a 2,521-353 won-lost. Thus she battled .872 in singles, .890 in doubles, and .832 in mixed--.877 for everything. It means she won 48.6 percent of all the tournaments she entered. Whew!
In the matter of major titles, her starburst of 56 (18 singles, 31 doubles, 7 mixed) didn't quite reach Margaret Court's stratospheric 62 (24-19-19). Despite her record nine Wimbledons in singles she's still a step behind Billie Jean King's overall record of 20, Martina holding 9-7-3.
Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2000, arguably the greatest player of all time, Martina was born on October. 18, 1956, in Prague, Czechoslovakia, and became a U.S. citizen in 1981, after defecting six years earlier. She was raised by her mother, Jana, and stepfather, Mirek Navratil, whose name she took.
Despite her upbringing on slow clay in the small town of Revnice, outside of Prague, she has always been a tornado-like attacker, a net-rusher. She attracted notice at 16 in Paris, the French Open of 1973, by serving-and-volleying a clay specialist and former champ, Nancy Richey, to defeat, and reaching the quarters unseeded.
Her lustrous 16-year rivalry with Chris Evert was launched that year in Akron, Ohio, an indoor defeat. "She was overweight, but eager and gifted," Evert remembered. "It was a close match (7-6, 6-3). Even though I'd never heard of her, and couldn't pronounce or spell her name, I could tell she'd be trouble. Especially if she got in shape."
She was trouble, and eventually the 5-foot 71/2, 140-pound Navratilova made extreme fitness her trademark in chasing and overcoming Evert, who became her good friend. Although Evert in the rivalry, 21-4, at the high point of her dominance, Navratilova won their last encounter Chicago, in 1988, 6-2, 6-2, to wind up with a 43-37 edge. Three years later, also in Chicago, Martina scaled Evert's seemingly unattainable record 157 pro singles tournament victories. By beating Jana Novotna from two match points down, 7-6 (7-4), 4-6, 7-5, she nailed victory No. 158,and kept going. She had unknowingly begun to stalk Evert at home with her initial title, Pilsen, in 1973.
Her proudest times were spent in the game's temple, Centre Court, Wimbledon, where she became the all-time singles champ by defeating Zina Garrison, 6-4, 6-1, in 1990--her ninth championship. The record of eight had been achieved more than a half-century before when Helen Wills Moody beat Helen Jacobs in 1938.
Navratilova yet pudgy, began her run at Moody by coming from behind in the third set to beat top-seeded Evert, 2-6, 6-4, 7-5, in the 1978 final. She repeated over Evert, but was deterred, momentarily, in the 1980 and 1981 semis by Evert 4-6, 6-4, 6-2, and Hana Mandlikova, 7-5, 4-6, 6-1.
Rebounding, she reeled off championships in years, six successive years, snapping Suzanne Lenglen's mark of five (1919-23). Driving to the 1988 final, she had rolled up 47 straight match wins, three short of Moody's Wimbledon record streak (Moody, who didn't enter annually, won her eight titles between 1927 and 1938). But Martina was by the Grand Slammer of that year, Steffi, 5-7, 6-2, 6-1.
Graf beat her for the title in 1989, too, but lost to Garrison in the 1990 semis. Thus, Martina triumphed again in her 11th final. There would be one last Centre Court singles final, the 12th (a 31st major), in 1994--a no-lose situation since just getting there at 37 was a triumph itself. Martina was brilliant in a quarterfinal revival against Jana Novotna, 5-7, 6-0, 6-1 (reversing their 1993 semi result), and sharp enough to get past unseeded Gigi Fernandez, 6-4, 7-6 (8-6). Whatever the sentiment of the occasion and the crowd, the record book says she did lose the final--valiantly, to Conchita Martinez's back-hand passers, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. The Big M left some lofty records at the Big W for her 22 years besides the titles: most consecutive finals (9), most matches (279), singles wins (119), doubles wins (80), overall wins (243). She was 119-13 in singles, 80-14 in doubles, 44-9 in mixed.
That of course, has been her masterpiece, but Navratilova also won four U.S., three Australian and two French singles.
Winning the U.S. was her most frustrating trial. Not until her 11th try, in 1983 (having lost the 1981 final in a tiebreaker to Tracy Austin) did Navratilova make it: 6-1, 6-3, over Evert. In 1991, almost 35, she was the tourney's oldest losing finalist since 40-year-old Molla Mallory in 1924.
Only one prize, a singles Grand Slam, eluded her--barely in 1983 and 1984. Although 1983 was her most overpowering season (16 victories in 17 tournaments on an 86-1 match record), it was 1984 (13 victories in 15 tourneys on 78-2) when the Slam seemed certain. With three of the titles in her satchel, she reached the semis of the last that year, the Australian, on a pro record 74-match winning streak, eclipsing Evert's 55 of 1974. However, Helena Sukova intervened, 1-6, 6-3, 7-5. After that Martina took off on a 54-match streak, severed by Hana Mandlikova. Mandlikova also snipped her second longest streak, 56, in the Australian final of 1987.
In 1983 a Slam never got started. Kathy Horvath, ranked 33rd, upset Navratilova in the fourth round of the first major, the French. Thereafter Martina won the next three, and so Sukova ended her string of six major titles.
Navratilova did, however, register a doubles Grand Slam with Pam Shriver in 1984. Perhaps the greatest of all teams, Navratilova-Shriver won 20 majors (equaling the record total of Louise Brough and Margaret duPont, 1942-57). The Navratilova-Shriver combine produced 79 tournament victories, including 10 season-climaxing Virginia Slims titles, and a record 109-match winning streak between 1983 and a 1985 loss in the Wimbledon final to Liz Smylie and Kathy Jordan.
As a tireless all-round campaigner, Martina piled up awesome singles and doubles totals. She won more than 20 titles in singles and doubles six years: 29 in 1982 (15 singles) and 1983 (16 singles). Twelve years she won more than 100 matches overall, singles and doubles, a high of 160 (against seven losses) in 1982.
During 1985, 1986 and 1987, she was in the final of all 11 majors (Australian not held in 1986), winning six, a singular feat until Steffi Graf played in 12 straight between 1987 and 1990, winning 10.
In 1987 she made a rare triple at the U.S. Open (singles, doubles, mixed), the third of the open era.
From 1973 through 1982 Navratilova was no worse than No. 4 in the world rankings, attaining No. 1 in 1978, keeping it in 1979. She returned for a record run of 150 weeks, 1982 into 1987, until supplanted by Graf in 1987, who broke the record with 186 straight weeks. She ranked in the U.S. Top Ten 14 years, no worse than No. 3 (1980 and 1981), and at No. 1 a record 12 years, 11 straight since 1982, also a record.
Disapproving of what was termed Navratilova's increasing "Americanization," sports federation authorities in the communist Czechoslovak government reportedly planned to curtail her travel. "Learning this," she said, "I knew I had to defect." She announced her intention of becoming a U.S. citizen at the U.S. Open of 1975. For years after she was considered a "non-person," her results never printed or announced in Czechoslovakia.
Returning to her homeland in triumph (and to the government's discomfort) as a U.S. citizen in 1986, she led her adopted country's team to a Federation Cup victory, as she had Czechoslovakia 11 years before. Playing for the U.S., she was peerless, unbeaten, and helped win two other Federation as well as one Wightman Cup.
Oakland was her last tour stop prior to the Garden in 1994, and Martina's last final on her own. She lost narrowly and gamely to Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, 1-6, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-3), despite leading 4-1 in the second, and serving for it at 5-3 in the third. "It would have been nice to have said goodbye to the tour with a win," she sighed after the 2-hour, 23-minute test.
But it had been a pleasure to watch Martina dominate for more than two decades.
[ Last edited by shaqkobe on 2005-7-9 at 06:59 PM ] |
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