Born in 1956, this tomboy joined the wTA tour in 1973! what followed was a reign that probably no other tennis player will ever be able to emulate! In a career spanning almost 22 years between 73 to 94, this superlady achieved more than most would dare to dream of! To let numbers speak is not always a good thing, and even in her case they might not do full justice to her, but it would be an honour for them to try to describe her!
singles titles:160+
doubles titles:160+
grand slams:56
matches won: 1400+
still even these figures perhaps fail to reflect her true worth! She was more than a tennis player! A firm believer in herself! She publicly proclaimed her lesbian status, which cost her not only many lucrative contracts in terms of money, but also many awards and posts! But she stood by her convictions and became an activist for her purpose! She carried on her career through the initial resentment to the final mass adulation and achieved perhaps everything a tennis player could achieve!
And something that does reflect her greatness with some clarity is the fact that out of the 14 grand slam finals in which she played against her super-rival Chris Evert, she came out tops on 10 occasions! It is perhaps than ironic that she won her first grand slam title playing alongside this very superstar!
But despite a career that seemingly leaves nothing to be desired she is still on court, back to doing what she does best! And she has made it to the finals of yet another grand slam event!
I wonder what might she now achieve at the tender age of 46!