"Gabriela Sabatini forgot fame, career, money" - When Monica Seles was moved by Argentine being the only top player to stand by her post-stabbing

Monica Seles once revealed how moved she was by Gabriela Sabatini's kind gesture after her tragic stabbing incident. At the 1993 Citizen Cup in Germany, Seles was attacked mid-match by Gunter Parche, an obsessive fan of her rival Steffi Graf. Parche was motivated by his desire to see Graf reclaim the World No. 1 ranking from the then-19-year-old.

After the distressing incident, the WTA gave the top players the opportunity to vote on whether Seles' World No. 1 ranking should be frozen until she returned to the tour. Of the top 25 players, seventeen took part in the vote. All of them voted against preserving Seles' ranking except for Sabatini, who chose to abstain. It is worth mentioning that Graf did not cast a vote, since she didn't take part in the Rome tournament where the meeting was held.

Speaking to Sportstar in 2020, Monica Seles revealed how the vote caused her to realize that there were no real friends when the World No. 1 ranking was at stake. However, the nine-time Grand Slam champion said that she wasn't bitter about her rivals' heartbreaking decision.

"It made me realise tennis is a business. You have no friends. The other players, they're just waiting to take away your number-one spot, in any way, shape, or form they can. That's what they did. But I'm not bitter," Monica Seles said.

Seles also spoke about Gabriela Sabatini's compassionate choice to abstain from the vote, praising the Argentine for showing humanity instead of caring more about her career. She acknowledged that Sabatini's decision must have been very difficult and commended the former World No. 3 on her strong character.

"What Gabby did affected me so much. Everything comes and goes, there's always going to be a new number one, or someone making more in a new contract. But what you are at you core, the most important thing about you, that doesn't change," Monica Seles said.

"Gabby was someone who forgot fame, career, money, everything else, and just cared about me as a person. It took strength and character for her to do what she did. It couldn't have been easy," she added.

Monica Seles also reflected on her rivalry with Gabriela Sabatini, referring to her thrilling 6-4, 5-7, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 win over the Argentine in the 1990 WTA Finals final as one of the highlights of her career.

"It is difficult for us as the players to choose what to do" - Steffi Graf defended the move to not freeze Monica Seles' ranking

Monica Seles and Steffi Graf - Source: Getty

Although Steffi Graf wasn't involved in the vote, she did defend the move to not freeze Monica Seles' World No. 1 ranking. In a press conference at the 1993 US Open, the German pointed out that every player, including herself, was fighting through injuries to compete year-round, making it very hard to justify letting Seles keep the top spot without being on tour.

"You got to understand, all of us, we have to play all year long. I mean, we all have to struggle through injuries, through our problems and through tough matches and through tough tournaments. You know, it has been a very sad incident and it is tough for everybody, but I think it is difficult for us as the players to choose what to do," Graf said.

Interestingly, when Seles eventually made her comeback in 1995, she returned as the co-World No. 1 alongside Graf. This was largely because of Martina Navratilova, who advocated on her behalf as the president of the WTA Players' Association.

Even though she had spent more than two years on the sidelines, Monica Seles triumphed at her comeback tournament, the 1995 Canadian Open. After beating Gabriela Sabatini in the semifinals, she claimed a dominant 6-0, 6-1 win over Amanda Coetzer in the final to clinch the title.