"Didn't think I would be here, I came here to get in a few matches before Wimbledon" - When Steffi Graf spoke on French Open SF win over Monica Seles

Steffi Graf once said that she competed at the 1999 French Open just to get match practice before Wimbledon.

Graf endured back problems ahead of the tournament and entered as the sixth seed. She reached the semifinals with wins over Magdalena Maleeva, Ines Gorrochategui, Asa Carlsson, Anna Kournikova and Lindsay Davenport.

She faced her rival Monica Seles and came back from a set down to beat her 6-7(2), 6-3, 6-4 to book her place in the final. Graf said after the match that she didn't think she would be in the title clash in Paris as she came to the French Open just to get a few matches in before Wimbledon.

"Deep down, I just didn't think I would be here. Honestly, I came here to get in a few matches before Wimbledon, not really thinking I'd be doing that well," she said.

Graf said she did not feel the match was over for her despite losing the opening set.

"Even though I lost the first set, I didn't have the feeling that the match was over at all," the German said. "At that point for me, not too much had happened yet, and I think that showed the way I started the second set. I wanted to get a break, and that's what I did."

Graf faced Martina Hingis in the final and beat her 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 to win her 22nd Grand Slam singles title. The German also reached the Wimbledon final in 1999 but lost to Lindsay Davenport.

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Steffi Graf won six titles at the French Open

Steffi Graf with husband Andre Agassi at a 2023 event

Steffi Graf is one of the greatest competitors at the French Open, winning 84 out of 94 matches with six titles to her name. She has not won more matches at any other Grand Slam. Only Chris Evert has won more titles at the clay-court Major than the German.

Graf's first Grand Slam in Paris came in 1987 when she beat Martina Navratilova in the final. She successfully defended her title in 1988 after thrashing Natasha Zvereva 6-0, 6-0 in the title clash.

Graf's third title at the clay-court Major came five years later in 1993 with a win over Mary Joe Fernandez in the title clash. Her fourth and fifth titles at the French Open came in 1995 and 1996, beating Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in both finals. The 1999 victory was Steffi Graf's last Grand Slam win.