Martina Navratilova looks back at the time she and Chris Evert were snubbed after shooting for magazine cover

Martina Navratilova was recently reminded of her appearance on the cover of the famous Sports Illustrated magazine during her playing days. However, that also reminded Navratilova of a rather unpleasant incident regarding Sports Illustrated magazine, which also included her great rival and good friend Chris Evert.

Navratilova revealed that she and Evert once posed and shot for the SI cover, but the duo were subsequently replaced by a feature on the NBA finals.

Both Navratilova and Evert have been featured on the SI magazine cover multiple times, back when they were active on the WTA tour. But things did not pan out well when they were slated to appear together, as Navratilova elaborated on Twitter.

"I remember shooting an SI cover with Chris and then SI put a bunch of arms from the NBA finals on the cover instead," Martina Navratilova wrote while reacting to a social media post about tennis players who have graced the SI magazine cover.

The 59-time Grand Slam title winner (across singles and doubles) also expressed disappointment at the fact that, as the years went by, female athletes donned the cover of SI magazine mainly for swimsuit issues.

"I stopped signing SI covers for collectors- about the only time women were on the cover was the swimsuit issue," Navratilova wrote.

The first time Navratilova featured on the SI cover was in 1983. She had already won four Wimbledon titles, an Australian Open and a French Open title by then, but she made the cover only after winning her maiden US Open title.

---

Martina Navratilova's wife Julia Lemigova shares positive message as tennis great continues battle with cancer

Martina Navratilova speaks during a WTA event in 2022.

Martina Navratilova's wife and Real Housewives of Miami star Julia Lemigova recently opened up about the American's battle with cancer. Navratilova was diagnosed with throat and breast cancer earlier this year.

Lemigova expressed positivity and a strong willingness on her and Navratilova's part to fight their hardest against the disease, and vowed that they will not cry over the setback.

"I'm a strong believer that when life hits you with a tragedy, no matter how big the tragedy is, you have basically two choices. You submit, or you push back and rebel," Lemigova told PEOPLE.

"This is just one of those huge tragedies that hit our family. And there is no time or space to sit and cry because that will not help. That will only make things worse," she added.

Navratilova, an active commentator and analyst for many big tournaments over the past few years, has discontinued that role due to her ongoing treatment. Navratilova was last seen during the WTA Finals in Fort Worth, Texas, where both she and Chris Evert were 'Legend Ambassadors.'