Chris Evert vs. Martina Navratilova

[jesparza562]

I cant imagine top players today being willing to hit 10+ ball rallies on a regular basis.. it just doesnt exist any more

[EKevinS]

do you have the entire match?

[sebbyknight]

7.38 - John L has identical haircut to Chrissie.

Amazing match. Technical perfection with the massive incapacity of wooden rackets. Really breathtaking.

[smancez]

Was that a top spin backhand from Martina at 2:54 ?

[hardsam68]

Evert played her Wimbledon final right here that year......

[jondavwal]

@hardsam68 I agree. She left it in Eastbourne. Too bad really.

[justnatural]

I think the moral of this match is give Chrissy one lil inch and she will take a mile, unless the ball is put away she will find a way to pass. I think the older Martina figured out a way of putting her volleys away more and an older Chris didn't have the resilience unless on clay

[dinh]

Anybody know who designed Chrissie's clothes? I just love her clothes back then, so simple, yet fashionable.

[twilliger123]

@dinh Ted Tinling designed all the star's tennis dresses back then. He caused a major furor in the 40's when he designed a dresses for Wimbledon with a line of color on the hem when they were supposed to be all white and then lace tennis panties for Gussie Moran. He was great!

[Kallytom]

Best match they played on grass in my opinion. The only wimbledon match they've played that ive never seen is there 1979 final and i doubt that is good as this classic

[trent8002003]

Even though she must have hit a billion winners off it, Chris' forehand still looks really awkward.,

[LobOverTheBackhand]

Am I the only one who like to bring the old wooden rackets to the courts? I love to see the look on people's faces...ha.

[alin1975]

@LobOverTheBackhand

You are certainly not the only one :)

I cant watch modern tennis. I simply cant take the sight of the single strategy that works today, which is basically powerful top-spin shots from the back. No more refined shot making and spectacular net play.

Not only would I bring it back to wood, I would also speed up some of the surfaces they slowed down.

[assindiastignani]

@alin1975 I could'nt agree with you more. The players today all hit the ball exremely well and with a great deal of power (thanks to their science-fiction hi-tech racquets) but so few of them know how to play the game of tennis. These rallies here are all masterpieces of touch, timing, finesse,strategy, psychology and intelligence. I think a step in the direction of making this game interesting to watch again would be exactly as you say: wooden racquets with smaller heads and faster surfaces.

[wayshow4]

after years and yearsof serena williams... martina's backhand slice is so refreshing :O

[koollatter]

I enjoy watching these old matches. No screaming or grunting!!!!

[harkeb]

The greatest rivalry ever in woman's tennis. They were so different, yet complimenting each other's play. I were fortunate enough to have witnessed it. 

[demc67]

chris must have left her A game in Eastbourne- Martina beat her pretty comfortably 6-4, 6-4 at Wimbledon 2 weeks later.....

[MARKBPHARM]

Is the gentleman commentating John Barrett or Dan Maskell?

[krosero]

@MARKBPHARM That's John Barrett.

[kalurank]

the passing shot at 9:14 is tremendous!!!

[KruspeFTW]

@kalurank Agreed. That was pure brilliance. 

[erryan10]

chrissie and martina really set the standard. Chrissie's precision baseline is so beautiful, even more when contrasted against Martina's all-out aggression. There were some parts of chrissie's play that was if you werent certain, you could have thought it was martina hingis, in her prime in 1997, when she would simply create the most amazing play against the entire tour.

[erryan10]

THANK YOU!!!!

[UESyorkie]

thank you very much!!

[tishaTS]

One of my favorite things about seeing this is that Martina and Chris acknowledge when the other has hit a great shot--"yup," "yeah"--and, sadly, we see so little of that in tennis today. They were both truly remarkable champions.

[emmyjo720]

Notice how quietly they play.

[MrChickyBee]

Chris Evert is incomparable - utterly feminine and composed and a real lady in the true sense of the word. There has never been another like her...

[mariomarcano]

And there will never be...

[D7186]

That last forehand running pass is one of the best I've seen Chrissie hit after such a long match it was incredible she got to the ball much less made that kind of shot,a great match from the best 2 ever tennis will never be the same...

[Nicklas4500]

Martina did better against Chris with a graphite racket but I actually prefer the look of her shots here. She really hits through her backhand and seems to have more follow-through. Her groundstrokes are landing really deep. Her serve is more graceful too imo with a wooden racket.

[Nicklas4500]

@assindiastignani That's a good point.

[preciousjey]

wow more grass please!. i am bored of this california hardcourts

[showbiz2009]

What a phenominal match by two phenominal players! I can't believe the length of the rallies in this match considering it was on grass, and their depth was amazing: how they managed to get such depth when they were retrieving the ball from extremely awkward positions is beyond me. One of the best highlight clips I've ever seen; the quality was outstanding!

[rmorte62]

It's why I watched tennis in the first place. Gritty and classy.

[jpk111]

Thank you for bringing back some wonderful memories.

Ironically the killer blow was an ace served by Chrissie toward the end of

the match.

[MrMahlerman]

How does one find a copy of this complete match.

I play tennis because of Billie Jean King. I love tennis, because of Billie Jean King against ANYBODY, and Chris Evert for her amazing consistency in all aspects of the sport, professionalism, and amazing rivalry with Martina Navratilova.

I love finding the obscure matches of them all.

[SunderedPrey08]

Wow so much subtlety. Classic baseline and serve and volley game is so much fun to watch.

[Zaf67]

They may not be as powerful as the players today but my goodness they certainly have fantastic skills, ball control and are a real class act!

[sandrovic1970]

Lordy!! On Martina's third championship point, Evert hits the line three times, then goes charging into the net!! There is a bit in the middle when you have the birds chirping, Chrissie and Martina playing a three-set thriller on grass, and you just feel that everything in the world is perfect...

[raef203]

Wow, an absolute ALL time great match of this rivalry..thank you 100 times for posting this! may we see the last two games if the match? Match point...that would be exciting!

[krosero]

There are technical problems on my disc so I can't upload the ending.

[dtw1958]

@krosero Thanks, wow hard to believe after this match Martina won 6-4 6-4 at Wimb 79. These courts may have been slower in Evert's favor. Thanks again.

[seaside145]

Too bad this couldn't have been the 1979 Wimbledon final!

[shihlin1]

Thanks so much for posting this match. I've seen clips of it from a DVD that has rotten quality, this is so MUCH better! Chris's one great match in '79 that was otherwise a spotty year for her. She would go on to lose the Wimbledon final to Martina (again) and the Open final to Tracy Austin. '79 was also the year she got married to John Lloyd and enjoy marital bliss (sic), but not find it on the tennis court. She did regain her # 1 ranking a year later, but '79 was not a good year for yer.

[mcadam75]

This is a fantastic match - thank you for posting

[RaleighNC306]

Aw, where is the end? :-) Martina has the best overhead...ever. Chrissie has the best lob...ever. We tennis players were so blessed to have these two peaking at the same time.

[Vengeance509]

Now this was when women's tennis was truly interesting and fun to watch. You can't get any better than Chrissie vs. Martina. Except for a brief spell in the middle of their rivalry, when Navratilova was killing her, they were so closely matched. Evert came back to redeem herself in the mid-80s.

Only watching great tacticians like Justine Henin, or Mauresmo, or Hingis, compare today (and two of them are gone). Venus on grass is fun to watch. Otherwise...mindless bashing.

[willissuperb]

FANTASTIC tennis! I've never seen clips of this match, though I've seen the score and often wondered how the match went. Brilliant display by two all-time greats. Pity it didn't take place at Wimbledon a few weeks later, though... Thanks so much for posting!

[MARKBPHARM]

The rallys in this match seem even longer than in that epic French Open final these two played in 1985. Given the wooden racquets, I don't think you would ever see a match played between two ladies that demonstrated greater strategic and tactical capacity. It would make a fine teaching tool for young players now.

[krosero]

@MARKBPHARM Keep in mind that I picked out the best rallies, and often picked long ones. Those were my choices. The rallies at the French were longer, on average, though some at Eastbourne were pretty long.

[peejes]

Great video, thanks!

[malcomino]

yes i agree with all you said,i noticed the racquets only after i wrote the comment

[bqndc]

I miss watching these two! Amazing to watch them hit with pace and depth, and the ball on the center of the racket face when all they have to work with is 80 sq cm. of racket head.

[CariocaBoy82]

Wow! Those are some of the best passing shots I have ever seen by Chris and the Australian Open semifinals in 88 as well.

[johnblacklovesmar]

Both are gracious players. They regularly acknowledge the fine play of their opponent.

[kangaroosbraun]

Martina's backhand was very suspect in those years. you can see Chris knew that and attacked it. Nancy Lieberman changed all that......

[twilliger123]

No, Nancy got her into shape, Renee Richards made her backhand a winning shot.

[arthurspooner60]

now THIS is what you call grass

[malcomino]

today the girls play another level,the ball runs way faster,evert seems a club player,navratilova is always great

[johnblacklovesmar]

No club player plays as well as Evert.

[Nicklas4500]

Evert is an incredible player - and this is about the best sustained tennis I've ever seen played on grass.

[krtina455]

Yes, I think these 2 could have played best of 5 sets.

[cdnserbluvr]

I miss when grass was grass.

fast and low, almost skidding at times

[joye25]

Great moment!

[thadxxx]

Thank you for posting this!!! I've always read about this match which my be the best ever in their rivarly. It just wasn't a Grand Slam that's why it's not discussed as much as it should be. Too bad Martina won in straight sets at Wimbledon 2 weeks later. Chris would have traded matches for that. Please post match point if you can. Thanks again.

[RaleighNC306]

Test

[mrbronte100]

Indisputable that Chris was number one in 1980 but highly debatable by the end of 1981. Both Austin and Navratilova had winning records over her. Chris's number one ranking at this point was tenuous at best.

[Nicklas4500]

Wow, what a great match, both playing so well at the same time. Thanks for posting!

[mrbronte100]

Not every record book has Chris ranked number one at the end of 1978. Chris sat out the first part of the year and Martina ended up winning more tournaments. In 1979, though, Martina was definitely better.

[shihlin1]

Chris wrote in her book the debate was raging who was #1 for 1978. At the start of '78 Chris was clearly bored with the tour & took 3 months off. During this time her love life became front page news as she dated Burt Reynolds & Jack Ford (Prez Ford's son). Big mistake to take time off b/c during her absence Martina destroyed her opponents on the indoor circuit. If Chris hadn't won the Open in '78, she would've clearly been #2. But from '78 and on Martina turned the tide in their rivalry.

[Darkeye66]

I prefer watching matches with the wooden raquets,the pace is nicer to watch and from start to finish there was barely a duff shot played here.Remember it like yesterday.Chris forever.

[BLACKTREAT]

thank YOU FOR POSTING!

WoW!,

LOOK AT THE STRATEGY IN THIS MATCH. TOO BAD MARTINA BEAT CHRIS IN THE WIMBLEDON FINAL WEEKS LATER

[mrbronte100]

I think Martina learned from this match and used it to her advantage at Wimbledon. Plus she was number one at this point, before lapsing again in the early 80s.

[Ariamaluum]

I think it was more due that this was a one week tournament and Wimbledon is a two-week tournament. I like Martina over Chris in a two-week tournament when both get to finals.

[minnie129]

Thank you so much for posting. This is probably my fave match of all time. It's a true classic.

[krtina455]

I think Martina's slice backhand got worse as her career progressed. It is really stinging in this match.

[dandownunder19]

Chris's forehand was strong in this match, loved how she saved multiple match points to win, thanks for posting.

[chapaev36]

Amazing tennis. What the heck happened to women's tennis?