Martina [Navratilova] won more on fast courts and I won more on slow courts, but Steffi came along and won more titles on both surfaces. - Stefanie Graf was born on 14 June 1969, in Mannheim, Baden-Wrttemberg, West Germany, to Heidi Schalk and car-and-insurance salesman Peter Graf (18 June 1938 30 November 2013).When she was nine years old, her family moved to the neighboring town of Brhl.She has a younger brother, Michael. Graf vs Williams H2H MATCHES PLAYED All Rounds Final 1/2 1/4 First Second Third Fourth Qualifying q-First q-Second Pre-q Rubber 1 Rubber 2 Rubber 3 Rubber 4 Rubber 5 Robin Bronze N/A She married fellow Olympic champion Agassi in 2001, and the pair have two children together. [151], Graf was voted the ITF World Champion in 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1995 and 1996. In the 1980s and '90s Graf was ranked the top woman player by the Women's Tennis Association . In July, a left knee injury forced Graf to withdraw from the Summer Olympics in Atlanta. She had some amazing rivalries with Hall of Fame opponents such as Navratilova, Evert, Sabatini and Seles. Williams vs. Graf, and Graf's Disciple - The New York Times She lost the world No. At the Roland-Garros trophy ceremony, after she . He claimed that he committed the attack to help Graf reclaim the world No. At the US Open, Graf beat Sabatini in a three-set final to win the Grand Slam by 63, 36, 61, a feat previously performed by only two other women, Maureen Connolly Brinker in 1953 and Margaret Court in 1970. Having suffered from leg cramps since the middle of the third set, Graf ran off the court seconds after match point to seek medical treatment. Grand Slam tournament performance timeline. [100] In September 2004, Graf dispatched her former doubles partner Gabriela Sabatini, in straight sets, in an exhibition match played in Berlin, Germany. . She did not win a tournament but consistently reached tournament finals, semifinals and quarterfinals, with the highlight being her semifinal loss to Navratilova at the US Open. Steffi Graf | Player Stats & More - WTA Official 'The Ten' went one way; you went another", "The greatest female tennis player of the last 50 years: the fans' verdict", "Exclusive Interview with Steve Flink about the career of Chris Evert", "A celebration of Martina Navratilova's multifaceted legacy", "Special events and records at the 1988 Australian Open Tennis Tournament", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Steffi_Graf&oldid=1140574067, Golden Slam (4 majors + Olympic gold in same calendar year), Non-Calendar Year Grand Slam in addition to already winning a Grand Slam, 100% match winning percentage in 1 season, 100% match winning percentage in 3 separate seasons, 89.67% (278-32) match winning percentage overall, 5 calendar years winning 3+ Grand Slam titles, Defeated the top 3 seeded players in the same tournament, Reached the final of all four Grand Slams tournaments in a calendar year, Reached the final of all four Grand Slams tournaments in a calendar year three times, 5 years as wire-to-wire (all 52 weeks) No. Graf, meanwhile, was back to defend her Olympic title on the clay courts of Barcelona 1992, where she took silver after losing to the USAs Jennifer Capriati in the final. [21] Her father, an aspiring tennis coach, first introduced her to the game, teaching his three-year-old daughter how to swing a wooden racket in the family's living room. However, she finished her year with a highlight, winning her first Virginia Slims Championships since 1989 by beating Arantxa Snchez Vicario in the final despite needing painkillers for a back injury. She was also inducted to the German Sport Hall of Fame. [41][42] Graf, however, recovered to defeat Martina Navratilova 62, 67, 61 in the Wimbledon final after defeating Monica Seles 60, 61 in a fourth round match, Arantxa Snchez Vicario in a quarterfinal, and Chris Evert in a semifinal. The Trials of Steffi Graf. In the final, Evert was completely overwhelmed in the first set, losing 6-1. 33 years ago, Steffi Graf made this unique record which remains 3 at that time and said, "I have done everything I wanted to do in tennis. The assailant, a fan of German tennis star Steffi Graf, Top women's tennis player Monica Seles is stabbed by a deranged German man during a match in Hamburg. She had just lost a three-set semifinal to No. And Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf, arguably the most accomplished sports couple there ever was, had good reason to be on campus that day. Steffi Graf - Overpowering - Tennis, Forehand, Professional - JRank 1 ranking for the first time in her career, a ranking she would hold for the next 186 consecutive weeks, a record (it was tied by Serena Williams in 2016). Graf was the first player other than Navratilova or Evert to hold the top spot since Tracy Austin in 1980.[27]. Less than three weeks after beating her in New York, Graf inflicted yet another defeat on the Argentinean, giving her no chance with an imposing 6-3, 6-3 victory. Angelique Kerber recalls memories of hero Steffi Graf after Wimbledon 1 Ranking", "Graf wastes no time reaching another final", "Roland-Garros - the 2021 Roland-Garros Tournament official site", "The 1988 French Open: how Agassi arrived, Graf ruled and Wilander won", "TENNIS; Graf Shuts Out Zvereva to Gain French Open Title", "Wimbledon; An Era Ends as Graf Beats Navratilova", "Forget Calendar Slam, "Surface Slam" Almost as Rare", "THE SEOUL GAMES: Women's Tennis: Graf Turns Her Slam Into a Golden One", "SURPRISE! It was the days when the Williams . Graf retired at the age of 30 in 1999 while ranked as the world No. The Washington, D.C. tournament was notable because Graf won the first twenty points of the final against Zina Garrison. At age 13 she became the second youngest player ever to earn an international ranking. A mixture of injury problems, personal difficulties, and loss of form made 1991 a tough year for Graf. Graf later stated it was the best tennis she had ever played in a Grand Slam final. Steffi Graf | Biography, Titles, & Facts | Britannica Her birth name is Stefanie Maria Graf and she is currently 51 years old. Proceeds from her match against Sabatini went to Graf's foundation, "Children for Tomorrow".[102]. She then successfully defended her title at the US Open, defeating Monica Seles in the final. It was decided to grant her a joint number-one ranking with Graf who took her first loss of the year in the first round to Amanda Coetzer. Nominated and voted the title Mother of the nation in her country, Germany, 2010. They have two children. Graf served for the match at 53 in the third set but lost the game and won only three more points in the match. She ended the 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1995, and 1996 tennis seasons as the worlds top-ranked player. Victories at Zurich and Brighton preceded the Virginia Slims Championships, where Graf cemented her top-ranked status by beating Navratilova in the four-set final. [115], She built her powerful and accurate serve up to 183km/h (114mph), making it one of the fastest serves in women's tennis and was a capable volleyer. Steffi Graf was born in Mannheim, West Germany on June 14, 1969. At the 1999 French Open, Graf and Agassi . This was a major upset as Garrison had to save a match point to defeat Monica Seles in the quarterfinal, and was expected to easily fall to Graf, whom she had not beaten in four years. 6 in 1985. 1988 French Open. She then successfully defended the three Grand Slam titles she won the year before. Grand Slams) main-draw, Olympic Games and Fed Cup are included in winloss records. All Rights Reserved. 1 Lindsay Davenport en route to the Philadelphia title. First professional tournament: 1982 Porsche Grand Prix at Filderstadt, Germany Plays: right handed, one handed backhand Raquet: Dunlop / Wilson Former Clubs: HTC Heidelberg, LTTC Rot-Weiss Berlin, BASF Ludwigshafen Favorite Tournament: Wimbledon Favorite Surface: Grass court Former Coaches: Pavel Slozil (1986-1991), Heinz Guenthardt . [101] She was also in Berlin to host a charity gala, as well as inaugurating a tennis stadium renamed the "Steffi Graf Stadion". [24] In 1985, for instance, she played only ten events leading up to the US Open, whereas another up-and-coming star, Gabriela Sabatini of Argentina, who was a year younger than Graf, played 21. . (W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (WL) winloss record. She played Jelena Dokic in Christchurch, New Zealand, Amanda Coetzer in Durban, South Africa, and her former rival Arantxa Snchez Vicario in Zaragoza, Spain. Feb 24, 2023. The Serbian tennis player this week surpassed Steffi Graf in the record of weeks at the top of the world ranking (both men's and women's) and there is curiosity to understand where Nole can arrive . Early life. n civa ani ajunge . Prosecutors dropped their case against Graf in 1997, when she agreed to pay a fine of 1.3million Deutsche Marks to the government and an unspecified charity.[72]. Steffi Graf was already world number one, and just shy of 19 years old, when she began the 1988 season. It was like a death by a thousand cuts for her poor opponents who would be . She is the only singles player (male or female) to have achieved a Grand Slam across three surfaces (grass, clay, and hard courts). She retired from tennis in 1999. "Such a cruel moment" - Steffi Graf once spoke about Martina Hingis Defending champion Steffi Graf was seeded first again at the French Open and swiftly went about beating her opponents, dropping only 11 games until the semi-finals.. Up against fourth-seeded Argentine Gabriela Sabatini in the last four, Steffi Graf faced her first real test, but overcame it with ease, winning 6-3, 7-6 to go through to the final. In 2010, Graf participated in the WTT Smash Hits exhibition in Washington, D.C. to support the Elton John AIDS Foundation. [147] In November 2018, Tennis.com polled its readers to choose the greatest women's tennis player of all time and Graf came in first. As usual, the defining shot of the day was the one that earned Steffi her nickname, Frulein Forehand. This time, Navratilova beat Graf 76, 63, 62. . Her accuracy with the slice, both cross-court and down the line and her ability to skid the ball and keep it low, enabled her to use it as an offensive weapon to set the ball up for her forehand put-aways. Graf had complained of an issue with her left knee but showed little trouble outplaying her opponent. On 1 October 1988, in winning the final at the Olympic Games in Seoul, German tennis player Steffi Graf achieved what no one else had done before or has done since. [16], In March 2012, Tennis Channel picked Graf as the greatest female tennis player ever in their list of 100 greatest tennis players of all time. In the Miami final, she lost her first set of the yearto Natasha Zverevaafter winning 54 consecutive sets. While the Berlin tournament was being played, the largest-circulation German tabloid, Bild, ran a story about an alleged scandal involving Graf's father. Graf is the first German to win the Spain's 'Prince of Asturias' award. 1999 Germany Television Award for her outstanding performance as tennis player and her importance to the German public. Although Sabatini got the best of Graf in the semifinals of the season-ending Virginia Slims Championships, Graf still finished the year as the top-ranked player. In 1988, there was no bronze medal match, and both beaten semifinalists received bronze medals. She was one of the most fierce Tennis stars of her generation and tasted great success on every court. Queens of the Court: Steffi Graf - Bleacher Report In 1988, Graf became the third women's star to win the Golden Slam. It was Graf's final Grand Slam singles title as she retired later that year. Steffi Graf - Children, Andre Agassi & Facts - Biography Voted Germans greatest role model by TV14 magazine, 2004. Tennis was a demonstration sport during the 1984 Olympic Games. [131][132] In 2015, she was appointed as the brand ambassador of Kerala tourism, for promoting Ayurveda in North America and Europe. Graf, Kerber's idol . Stefanie Maria "Steffi" Graf; 14. 1969, , ) . Graf then won all five of her Fed Cup matches, helping Germany defeat Spain in the final by defeating Arantxa Snchez Vicario, 64, 62. 3, Jana Novotn, before losing in the semifinal to first-seeded Davenport. No. A worthy opponent, she is an exceptional and versatile player to have dominated the international women's tennis scene for a long time. Is it possible to have any other year Steffi Graf: yep, it would be like Monica's or Serena's type of dominance. The experience of 88 in Seoul probably stands out, just coming from the US Open where I won the Grand Slam. She and Margaret Court are the only players, female or male, to win three majors in a calendar year five times (1988, 1989, 1993, 1995 and 1996). Seles defeated Graf at the Australian Open 46, 63, 62. And so many times she was able to absorb her opponent's biggest blows and . She won 7 Wimbledon, 6 French Open, 5 US Open and 4 Australian Open . ", "An Evolutionary History of Tennis Racquets", "Marketing to the female target audience", "OFFBEAT: Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf team up for new tennis racquet", "Viewing Gallery: Happy Birthday! It would also be the last loss Graf would ever have to Novotna in a match she completed (she did have a loss after withdrawing with injury after the first set of a late 1996 match). 1 female player and won 22 Grand Slam singles titles. Graf did not lose a set the whole tournament. According to her coaches Pavel Sloil and Heinz Gnthardt, Graf's superior sense of timing was the key behind the success of her forehand. In October, Graf defeated Sabatini in an exhibition match in Mannheim, Germany, winning both of their sets. 'It is Frightening' - Steffi Graf Opens up About the Negative Impact of Steffi Graf was born as Stefanie Maria Graf to Peter and Heidi Graf in Mannheim, Germany. 3. At the US Open, Graf was upset in the quarterfinals by Snchez Vicario 76, 63. Do Not Disturb. 1 ranking to Martina Hingis and failed to win a Grand Slam title for the first time in ten years in 1997. In their five previous head-to-head matches, Graf had defeated Martnez each time. She is better than them all. She had an Adidas sneakers line known as the St. Graf Pro line. Her parents are Heidi Schalk and Peter Graf. Having won the first three Majors of the year, Djokovic is three-fifths of the way to a . [a] Widely regarded as one of the greatest tennis players of all time, she was ranked world No. After surviving a scare in a three-setter against Amanda Coetzer in the first round, Graf reached the final with relative ease, while Seles went through her side of the draw in even more convincing fashion. Graf then reached her ninth Wimbledon singles final, losing to third-seeded Davenport in straight sets. Though she lost the game to opponent Tracy Austin by 6-4, 6-0, this did very little to dishearten the young blood. During a quarterfinal match between Seles and Magdalena Maleeva in Hamburg, Seles was stabbed between the shoulder blades by a mentally ill German fan of Graf, Gnter Parche. The difficulty of answering questions about the matter came to a head at a Wimbledon press conference, where Graf broke down in tears. The earliest sign that Steffi Graf was going to be one of the sport's all-time winners came at the end of a defeat. [54] She then won her next four tournaments in Tokyo, Indian Wells, Delray Beach and Miami respectively. [113] She often positioned herself in her backhand corner and although this left her forehand wide open and vulnerable to attack, her court speed meant that only the most accurate shots wide to her forehand caused any trouble. Her year continued indifferently with losses in three of her first four tournaments, including a semifinal loss to Jana Novotn in Chicago. Just Don't Ask Her", "The Shadow of Steffi Graf: Before Serena, Women's Tennis Had Another Unconquerable Force ", "Remembering What Made Steffi Graf a Tennis Legend", "73 Questions with Serena Williams | Vogue", "Tennis in Reunified Germany: Then and Now The Tennis Island", "Serving Her Country A Grand Slam May Have Brought West Germany's Steffi Graf Fame And Fortune, But To The Delight Of Her Countrymen Who've Watched Her Climb To The Top, She Remains 'one Of Them', "Steffi's father Peter Graf dies after cancer battle", "Both on and Off Court, Graf Has Come a Long Way in Past Year", "Tennis Roundup: Mysterious Illness Forces Graf to Withdraw From Wimbledon", "Graf Defeats Evert, Gains No. . "[87], From the beginning of her career until 1990, Graf regularly played doubles matches in Grand Slams and other tournaments, winning a total of 11 doubles titles. And on 5 June 1988, the match for the championship against the Soviet Unions Natasha Zvereva lasted a mere 34 minutes, with Zverera mustering only a few points in a 6-0, 6-0 whitewash. The American then took her opponent to a tie-break in the second set, eventually going down 7-3. steffi graf opponents Four Grand Slam wins and an Olympic title in the same year a feat that no male or female player had achieved before or has done since. [50][51], During Seles's absence, Graf won 65 of 67 matches,[52] three of four Grand Slam events and the year-end Virginia Slims championships. Associations of International Sport Federations, Organising Committees for the Olympic Games. 1999 Prince of Asturias Award, one of the most important awards of Spain and named after the heir apparent of Spain. Decision", "TENNIS - For Seles, the Wound Still Hurts", "Troubled WTA Tour limps through '94 season", "Tennis: Graf footloose and pain-free: Germany's world No 1 in intimidating form at the Australian Open", "Pierce Applies The Pressure To Upset Graf", "This Date in French Open History: June 2", "McNeil Ousts Graf in an Upset for the Ages", "Graf Set for Her Comeback, Pained Mainly by Questions", "U.S.OPEN '94 - Sanchez Smiles As Graf Winces", "Pierce tops Graf; Navratilova loses last", "Calf injury forces Graf out of Australian Open", "In a Classic, Graf Captures Wimbledon On Sheer Will", "Graf's Year Is Difficult One Till the End, but Successful", "Steffi Graf Investigated for Tax Evasion", "Tennis;Graf finds real world full of ups and downs", "Peter Graf Is Sentenced To Prison in Tax Case", "OLYMPICS;Injuries Force Sampras and Graf to Skip Games", "Amanda Coetzer - Tennis Player from South Africa - Tennis-Heroes.net", "Surgery on Graf's Knee Requires a Long Layoff", "Wimbledon '99: The Steffi Graf Interview: Time for a golden goodbye? I feel I have nothing left to accomplish. Argentinas Gabriela Sabatini reached her first ever final, but Graf secured a 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 victory. 1 ranking. Wimbledon authorities then threatened to immediately shut down any subsequent press conferences where questions about the issue were asked. [8] Furthermore, she is the only tennis player, male or female, to have won each major tournament at least four times. Steffi Graf is seen as one of tennis' best ever players, winning 22 Grand Slams but 1988 was the year that will never be beaten.

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