Graf did not lose a set the whole tournament. At Wimbledon, Graf lost in the semifinals to Zina Garrison, who with this victory broke Graf's string of 13 consecutive major finals. In the 1980s and '90s Graf was ranked the top woman player by the Women's Tennis Association . [43] In the final, Navratilova led 63, 42 before Graf rallied to win 36, 75, 61 for her third Grand Slam singles title of the year. She played Jelena Dokic in Christchurch, New Zealand, Amanda Coetzer in Durban, South Africa, and her former rival Arantxa Snchez Vicario in Zaragoza, Spain. She and Agassi, her husband, were on Team Elton John, which competed against Team Billie Jean King. Home; Q & A; Blog; Contact; Taramati Baradari Resort, Weather Biarritz October, Central Gwinnett High School, Facts About Victoria, Australia, Quick Funeral Home Obituaries . . Following her tournament victory in German Open in Berlin, Graf suffered one of the worst defeats of her career in a French Open semifinal where she won only two games against Snchez Vicario and lost her first 60 set since 1984. The American then took her opponent to a tie-break in the second set, eventually going down 7-3. The pair was moderately successful, winning the 1988 Wimbledon Championships together and reaching the finals of the French Open in 1986, 1987 and 1989. She won 7 Wimbledon, 6 French Open, 5 US Open and 4 Australian Open . It actually had several major flaws, especially based on today's understanding of stroke. Five months later, the world no. [151], Graf was voted the ITF World Champion in 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1995 and 1996. [63][64], A strained right calf muscle forced Graf to withdraw from the Australian Open. Finally Graf was given a match but prevailed 6-3, 7-6 where she would meet a surprise opponent in the final. Steffi Graf vs Serena Williams vs Martina Navratilova - Who is the Greatest Female tennis player of all time? Stefanie ("Steffi") Graf | Former German Tennis Pro and Champion. 1 player. Graf developed a bone spur at the base of her spine due to a congenital condition of the sacroiliac joint. She was named the 1988 BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year. [17] Graf married former world No. Associations of International Sport Federations, Organising Committees for the Olympic Games. She would later become the world's number one female tennis player. Speculation was rife at the beginning of 1989 about the possibility of Graf winning another Grand Slam. Graf began 1993 with four losses in her first six tournaments of the year: two to Snchez Vicario and one each to Seles and the 36-year-old Martina Navratilova. In an unusual arrangement, she paired with her coaches Pavel Sloil at Wimbledon in 1988 and Heinz Gnthardt in 1992 and 1996, also at Wimbledon. She did not win a tournament but consistently reached tournament finals, semifinals and quarterfinals, with the highlight being her semifinal loss to Navratilova at the US Open. Seles established herself as the new dominant player on the women's tour, winning the Australian Open, French Open, and US Open and, in March, ending Graf's record 186 consecutive-weeks hold on the World No. [58] Graf still managed to win San Diego the following month but aggravated a long-time back injury in beating Snchez Vicario in the final. After breaking Novotn's serve, Graf won the next four games to take the match 76, 16, 64. 1 ranking for the first time in her career, a ranking she would hold for the next 186 consecutive weeks, a record (it was tied by Serena Williams in 2016). She has a brother named Michael. [108] She was ranked world No. [107] Graf played in the celebrity doubles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles before straining her left calf muscle and being replaced by Anna Kournikova. Chosen by World Economic Forum As Young Global Leader for 2008, Godmother of the Navigator of The Seas (Royal Caribbean Cruiselines), 2002. TMF. Her year continued indifferently with losses in three of her first four tournaments, including a semifinal loss to Jana Novotn in Chicago. Last edited on 28 February 2023, at 20:01, Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Steffi_Graf_career_statistics&oldid=1142150918, Virginia Slims Championships, New York City, WTA Tour Championships, New York, United States. Stefanie Maria "Steffi" Graf; 14. 1969, , ) . She would either destroy opponents, clinically and . Stefanie Maria "Steffi" Graf (German pronunciation: [tf gaf]; born 14 Juin 1969) is a umwhile Warld No. It just felt something special that I was going to, recalls Graf. 2 Hingis and world No. Steffi Graf was already world number one, and just shy of 19 years old, when she began the 1988 season. [150] Flink said in 2020 that the jury was still out on (Serena) Williams as the greatest ever, but Williams' consistency over the long span did not match that of Graf or Navratilova. The weeks following Wimbledon [in 1999] weren't easy for me. Graf was inducted into the Tennis Hall of Fame in 2004. [127], Graf has signed many endorsement deals throughout the years including a ten-year endorsement deal with car manufacturer Opel in 1985,[128] and Rexona from 1994 to 1998. 1988 French Open. . On 17 August, after defeating Evert in a straight set final in the Virginia Slims of Los Angeles, Graf overtook Navratilova for the world No. Her birth name is Stefanie Maria Graf and she is currently 51 years old. Her glittering career saw her occupy the world no.1 spot for a total of 377 weeks (a record), including a run of 186 consecutive weeks between August 1987 and March 1991. [47] She would work with him for the remainder of her career. Graf became the first player in the open era to defeat the first, second, and third ranked players in the same Grand Slam tournament by beating second-ranked Davenport in the quarterfinals and third-ranked Seles in the semifinals. In 2010, Graf participated in the WTT Smash Hits exhibition in Washington, D.C. to support the Elton John AIDS Foundation. . She has appeared in many advertisements and television commercials with Andre Agassi including Canon Inc.[130] and Longines in 2008 (Agassi became Longines ambassador in 2007). ", "An Evolutionary History of Tennis Racquets", "Marketing to the female target audience", "OFFBEAT: Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf team up for new tennis racquet", "Viewing Gallery: Happy Birthday! (W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (WL) winloss record. My motivation wasn't what it was in the past. [54] She then won her next four tournaments in Tokyo, Indian Wells, Delray Beach and Miami respectively. #3. Nominated and voted the title Mother of the nation in her country, Germany, 2010. The match was the Wimbledon women's singles semi-final between Ms Graf and Kimiko Date. Graf who dated Michael Bartels is the daughter-in-law of Emmanuel Agassi. In July, a left knee injury forced Graf to withdraw from the Summer Olympics in Atlanta. 2 (21-06-10) Titles. [122] Graf's racquets were strung at 29 kilograms (64 pounds), significantly above the 50-60 pound range recommended by Wilson. The match was played over two days with Navratilova finally winning after saving three match points 61, 67, 76. [147] In November 2018, Tennis.com polled its readers to choose the greatest women's tennis player of all time and Graf came in first. It was decided to grant her a joint number-one ranking with Graf who took her first loss of the year in the first round to Amanda Coetzer. Grand Slams) main-draw, Olympic Games and Fed Cup are included in winloss records. [117] Early in her career, Graf used the Dunlop Maxpower Pro and Maxpower Kevlar racquets and then played with the Max 200G racquet from 1984 to 1993[118][119][120][121] before switching to Wilson from 1994 to 1999. Graf then won three consecutive indoor titles at Tokyo, Zurich, and Brighton, before once again contending with Navratilova at the season-ending Virginia Slims Championships in New York. [66] In August Monica Seles made her much anticipated return to tennis at the Canadian Open. Graf then won all five of her Fed Cup matches, helping Germany defeat Spain in the final by defeating Arantxa Snchez Vicario, 64, 62. At Wimbledon, Graf defeated Jana Novotn to win her third consecutive, and fifth overall, ladies' title. [123] In 2006, she signed an endorsement deal with Head. Her career prize-money earnings totalled US$21,895,277 (a record until Lindsay Davenport surpassed this amount in January 2008). Graf's technique on the forehand was unique and instantly recognizable: generating considerable racquet head speed with her swing, she reached the point of contact late and typically out of the air. Next came Wimbledon, where Martina Navratilova had won six straight titles. [70][71] He was eventually released after serving 25 months. 3, having racked up a total of 107 tournament victories. 1 . Four consecutive indoor tournament victories in the autumn helped improve her season, but for the third consecutive year, she failed to win the Virginia Slims Championships, where she lost in the first round to Lori McNeil. At the Olympic Games in Barcelona, Graf lost to Jennifer Capriati in the final and claimed the silver medal. Sport - Tennis: Novak Djokovic equals Steffi Graf's record for most weeks as world number one: Novak Djokovic equals Steffi Graf's record for most weeks as world. Once again, she reached the final without conceding a single set. She repeated the feat in 1993, 1995, and 1996. Shortly after winning in Tokyo, Graf injured her right thumb while cross-country skiing in Switzerland and subsequently withdrew from the Virginia Slims of Florida and the Lipton Championships. Shortly after the stabbing, during a players meeting at the Italian Open in Rome, 17 of the world's top 25 WTA members voted against preserving Seles' world No. [11][12][13][14] She won six French Open singles titles (second to Evert), seven Wimbledon singles titles, four Australian Open titles, and five US Open singles titles. Whether this scandal affected Graf's form is open to debate. The earliest sign that Steffi Graf was going to be one of the sport's all-time winners came at the end of a defeat. Graf had a bone splinter in her right foot during this tournament (and for the next few months), finally resulting in surgery on 4 October.[53]. Graf is the only female athlete in the list of Forbes Top-30 Most recognizable and marketable athletes in 1995. " ( . [62] Although Graf ended the year ranked No. Key; W F SF QF #R RR Q# DNQ A . June 4, 2020 marks the 32nd anniversary of Steffi Graf's ruthless lesson in the 1998 French Open final with Natasha Zvereva on the receiving end. [77] She soon began taking the top prize at junior tournaments with regularity, going on to win the European Championships 12s and 18s in 1982. More to Graf's net worth, family, height, net worth, nationality, residence, mansion, stats, retirement, now, news, updates and facts. Graf lost an Australian Open quarterfinal to Jana Novotn, the first time she did not reach the semifinals of a Grand Slam singles tournament since the 1986 French Open. Graf vs Williams H2H MATCHES PLAYED All Rounds Final 1/2 1/4 First Second Third Fourth Qualifying q-First q-Second Pre-q Rubber 1 Rubber 2 Rubber 3 Rubber 4 Rubber 5 Robin Bronze N/A She would either destroy opponents, clinically and . Since Graf skipped the Italian Open, she did not take part in the vote. Steffi Graf and Martina Hingis played out a thrilling final at the 1999 French Open, with the former winning 4-6, 7-5, 6-2. As true as that forehand was, the mask was no less a lie. 1 female player and won 22 Grand Slam singles titles. [156], Graf was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2004 and the German Sports Hall of Fame in 2008.[157][158]. 1 for 186 consecutive weeks (from August 1987 to March 1991; tied with Serena Williams, a record in the women's game) and a record total 377 weeks overall. Graf and Navratilova faced each other six times and Graf had the advantage, 4-2. AP Photo/Bruno Mosconi. Graf started 1988 by winning the Australian Open, defeating Chris Evert in the final 61, 76. The American then took her opponent to a tie-break in the second set, eventually going down 7-3. Graf reached 13 consecutive major singles finals, from the 1987 French Open through to . Her accuracy with the slice, both cross-court and down the line and her ability to skid the ball and keep it low, enabled her to use it as an offensive weapon to set the ball up for her forehand put-aways. But from 1990 onward, Graf hit fewer & fewer of those beautiful backhand drive/topspins for some reason. . [56][57] This was followed by a first-round straight-sets loss at Wimbledon to Lori McNeil, her only loss at Wimbledon between 1991 and 1997 and her first loss in a first round Grand Slam tournament in ten years. Graf then won the tournament in Berlin, losing only twelve games in five matches. Graf is the first German to win the Spain's 'Prince of Asturias' award. In 2015, Graf was the recipient of the International Club's Jean Borotra Sportsmanship Award. In a close French Open final, Graf again overcame Snchez Vicario, taking the third set 108. Going back in time, one can recall the right-handed player who fearlessly outplayed her opponents. As usual, the defining shot of the day was the one that earned Steffi her nickname, Frulein Forehand. She lost the world No. [16] When asked in an interview to name the greatest players of all time, Serena Williams stated Graf and Roger Federer. 1, 64, 46, 86 after beating Sabatini in a three-set semifinal. In 1996, Steffi Graf was famously proposed to by a fan as she was getting ready to serve. She first used the Wilson Pro Staff 7.0 lite, then switched to the Pro Staff 7.5 in 1996 and to the Pro Staff 7.1 in 1998. Their bond was unbreakable, and as Steffi became a force in tennis, Peter was right beside hercontrolling her life and business off the court while she controlled the rhythms on it. 3, Jana Novotn, before losing in the semifinal to first-seeded Davenport. . Steffi Graf and Serena Williams played just twice. (not considered in winloss records). I was not having fun anymore. On 5 June 1999, backed by a passionate central court crowd at Roland Garros, Graf won an epic final 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 against world no. The last few years of Graf's career were beset by injuries, particularly to her knees and back. [48] In Boca Raton, Florida, Graf reached her first final of the year, where she faced Conchita Martnez for the title. And each time the opponent threw a problem her way, she . She was successful, however, in the mixed doubles match. n civa ani ajunge . She returned to win a small tournament at Mahwah just before the US Open where, in one of the most anticipated matches of the year, she encountered Navratilova in a semifinal. . In the Miami final, she lost her first set of the yearto Natasha Zverevaafter winning 54 consecutive sets. Navratilova, therefore, . [101] She was also in Berlin to host a charity gala, as well as inaugurating a tennis stadium renamed the "Steffi Graf Stadion". [116][13] Graf stated that grass was her favorite surface to play on, while clay was her least favorite. 3 at that time and said, "I have done everything I wanted to do in tennis. After Wimbledon, for the first time in my career, I didn't feel like going to a tournament. [83], At the French Open, Graf reached her first Grand Slam final in three years and fought back from a set and twice from a break down in the second set to defeat the top ranked Hingis in three sets for a memorable victory. If Steffi Graf could shut out the world the way she shuts down opponents on the court then, for her, life would be perfect. Although she now lives in Las Vegas, Stefanie Maria Graf was born in Mannheim, West Germany on June 14, 1969. [21] Her father, an aspiring tennis coach, first introduced her to the game, teaching his three-year-old daughter how to swing a wooden racket in the family's living room. [41][42] Graf, however, recovered to defeat Martina Navratilova 62, 67, 61 in the Wimbledon final after defeating Monica Seles 60, 61 in a fourth round match, Arantxa Snchez Vicario in a quarterfinal, and Chris Evert in a semifinal. Only three other players have won the four majors plus the Olympic Games title, and never in the same calendar year. Highly emotional and sensitive, with a . Steffi is the GOAT in women's tennis because she's the most dominant player to ever play this game. She partnered with doubles specialist Mark Woodforde at the Australian Open in 1994, with Henri Leconte at Wimbledon in 1991 and at the French Open in 1994, and with Charlie Pasarell at the US Open in 1984. Seles was behind 26 in the first-set tiebreaker, but then came back to win six points in a row and take the set. Both dominated opponents with power and movement. At the beginning of 1999 Graf played the warm up event to the Australian Open in Sydney; she defeated Serena Williams in the second round and Venus in the quarterfinals before losing to Lindsay Davenport in the semifinal. She then lost to Sabatini in her next three tournaments before winning the U.S. Hardcourt Championships in San Antonio, beating Monica Seles in the final. [22] She began practising on a court at the age of four and played in her first tournament at five. [137] She started dating Andre Agassi after the 1999 French Open and they married on 22 October 2001, with only their mothers as witnesses. Five months later, the world no. Then on 11 September in New York, Graf became the first woman to win all four Grand Slam tournaments in the same year since Australias Margaret Smith-Court in 1970. All right, yes, there is the winning and, with it, the money, but they come too easily and bring only temporary relief. And Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf, arguably the most accomplished sports couple there ever was, had good reason to be on campus that day. Graf has a 20863 (76.8%) record against players who were, at the time the match was played, ranked in the top 10.[1]. 1 for 186 consecutive weeks from 17 August 1987: incredible footwork, a devastating forehand, an effective backhand and a powerful, reliable serve an all-round game that proved successful on every surface. A mixture of injury problems, personal difficulties, and loss of form made 1991 a tough year for Graf. One was 19 and one is pushing 34. Social invitations on the tour were often declined as Graf's focus was kept on practicing and match play. Graf then defeated Sabatini 63, 63 in the gold medal match at the Olympic Games in Seoul and achieved what the media had dubbed the "Golden Slam". In 1988, Graf became the third women's star to win the Golden Slam. [148] In July 2020, The Guardian polled its readers to determine the greatest female tennis player of the past 50 years, and Steffi was the clear favorite, picking up nearly twice as many votes as any other player. who often frustrated opponents with variety and consistency. 29 Jan Tennis Norge . Defending champion Steffi Graf was seeded first again at the French Open and swiftly went about beating her opponents, dropping only 11 games until the semi-finals.. Up against fourth-seeded Argentine Gabriela Sabatini in the last four, Steffi Graf faced her first real test, but overcame it with ease, winning 6-3, 7-6 to go through to the final. Graf won four indoor tournaments after the US Open, including a pair of straight-set wins over Sabatini in the finals of Zrich and Worcester. And the year began as expected, with Graf extending her Grand Slam tournament winning streak to five events at the Australian Open, defeating Helena Sukov in the final. Graf defeated Mary Joe Fernndez in the final of the Australian Open, which was her eighth Grand Slam singles title in the last nine she contested. On 13 August 1999, shortly after retiring with a strained hamstring from a second round match against Amy Frazier in San Diego, Graf announced her retirement from the women's tour at age 30. By August 1999, Graf had already announced twice that it was going to be her final year on the tour. Graf was trailing Martina Navratilova in the final 75, 20 before winning the match 57, 62, 61. Graf lost to Conchita Martnez in her comeback tournament a month later in Philadelphia. [85][86] She was ranked No. Pause, rewind, play: Steffi Graf - only player to win all four Majors and the Olympic gold in a year. Graf warmed up for the US Open with easy tournament victories in San Diego and Mahwah. All Rights Reserved. Answer (1 of 4): It isn't hard to replicate Steffi Graf's forehand, it's just not optimal. Graf, Kerber's idol . 1 Martina Navratilova, and reached two finals, at Wimbledon and the US Open, losing out to Navratilova in both. played a game called "Can you last an hour on court with Graf" because throughout her career she used to beat her opponents 6-0 6-1. In 1988, Graf became the first tennis player to achieve the Golden Slam by winning all four major singles titles and the Olympic gold medal in the same calendar year. Graf also won the 1984 demonstration event at the 1984 Los Angeles Games, but this was for players aged 21 or under, and it was not an official Olympic event. However, she finished her year with a highlight, winning her first Virginia Slims Championships since 1989 by beating Arantxa Snchez Vicario in the final despite needing painkillers for a back injury. This narrow focus meant that Graf, already shy and retiring by nature,[24] made few friends on the tour in her early years, but it led to a steady improvement in her play. She reached a total of 31 singles major finals. The 1995 Wimbledon final is regarded as one of the most dramatic women's major finals in history as Graf and Snchez Vicario battled in a tight third set that included a 16-minute long, 13-deuce game on Sanchez Vicario's serve at 55. [100] In September 2004, Graf dispatched her former doubles partner Gabriela Sabatini, in straight sets, in an exhibition match played in Berlin, Germany. . thesportslegends. [59][60] She began to wear a back brace and was unsure about playing the US Open but elected to play while receiving treatment and stretching for two hours before each match. Graf was the first player other than Navratilova or Evert to hold the top spot since Tracy Austin in 1980.[27]. In the final, Evert was completely overwhelmed in the first set, losing 6-1. Some noted observers, such as Margaret Court, suggested that Graf could achieve the feat a couple more times.
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