"The respect never went away" - Martina Navratilova reveals where Chris Evert & her relationship stands now after years of tennis rivalry

Martina Navratilova recently opened up about her biggest rival back in the day, Chris Evert, and their current relationship, which is based on love and respect. They were two of the most dominant players in the 1970s and 1980s.

When it comes to the biggest tennis rivalry in the Open Era, fans could immediately be drawn to the Novak Djokovic-Rafael Nadal tussle due to its freshness. Their 60-game battle ended 31-29 in the Serb's favor.

Meanwhile, Navratilova and Evert clashed 60 times only in the finals. In total, they squared off against each other on 80 occasions between 1973 and 1988. Navratilova won 43 and lost 37 of those matches.

At the 2025 Tennis Hall of Fame on Saturday, Andy Roddick said he was 'fascinated' by Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert's friendship. He asked the Czech-American legend to comment on their equation. She started by revealing that a documentary was on its way, which would recount her rivalry with Evert.

"We call here and there, and we text. Usually, we're sending each other tips on what shows to watch on Netflix. We connect, and we're doing a documentary, actually, that'll be out hopefully early next year. It's on our relationship and our rivalry," Navratilova said at 31:45 (via Served with Andy Roddick).

The 68-year-old acknowledged the animosity between herself and Chris Evert but also pointed out that they were happy when the other player won.

"It had all of those aspects of it: the respect, the like, the hate, the rivalry, but most of all, the respect that never went away. And empathy, I think we were always very empathetic to each other. So many times when you see our handshake, you don't know who won the match because we're both smiling," she added.

Martina Navratilova beat Evert in the final of the 1978 Wimbledon Championships, her first singles Grand Slam title.

"When I won my first Wimbledon, Chris was so sweet. It was just overwhelming. She was happy for me even though she lost. If I had to lose to anybody, I'd rather lose to Chris than anybody else," she continued.

The former World No. 1 concluded by saying that they didn't let the media circus affect their bond.

"We had some ups and downs, and the press was trying to pit us against each other big time, as they often do with women. But we learned how to handle that, and now, we have nothing but love for each other," Navratilova added.

Navratilova and Evert won 18 Majors each and spent 332 and 260 weeks, respectively, as the top-ranked singles player.

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Martina Navratilova picks Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner to win the 2025 US Open

Iga Swiatek and Martina Navratilova

Martina Navratilova has made her predictions for the US Open. She backed Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner to go all the way at Flushing Meadows.

The two youngsters also won at the Wimbledon Championships last month. While Sinner beat Carlos Alcaraz in the final, Swiatek defeated Amanda Anisimova 6-0, 6-0 in the summit clash. Speaking on Sky Sports, Navratilova recently said:

"Jannik Sinner plays his best on the hardcourt, and after his win at Wimbledon, I think he will be so confident. It will be hard for anyone to beat him."

She added:

"Iga Swiatek in the women's for me, even though she hasn't had the best summer. The Wimbledon win and the way she just conducted herself the whole tournament does mean that the old Iga is back."

Last week, Sinner retired from the Cincinnati Open final against Alcaraz, citing illness. Swiatek, on the other hand, won the WTA 1000 event.