Chrissie Evert celebrates the 50th Anniversary of her first Roland Garros title 🇫🇷 🏆

[@jkfrx7]

I have been a Chris Evert fan from the beginning. She was the epitome of consistency, elegance, and courage on the tennis court and has exemplified those same characteristics off the court. I still very much enjoy watching her matches ( thanks KZbin) today and live every point. Thank you, Chris, for being a big part of my life and teaching me so many lessons on tennis and life.

[@pdtoth]

Indisputably the greatest clay court player of the Open Era, after Nadal. That backhand! She played with grace, beauty, and absolute consistency.

[@jm7804]

Let's not compare women and men.

[@pjesf]

Although everyone and their mother now has a 2HBH, I’ve not seen one as gorgeous as hers. The footwork, backswing, forward swing, arm extension, wrist position, hip/shoulder rotation and follow thru were so sound and smooth as silk. Alcaraz’s looks similar when he hits it with a closed stance so I really enjoy watching him

[@lindaosika7648]

She never yelled at a call. Only a look and a head nod.

[@mrxman581]

Chris took a few years off from playing at the French Open to play team tennis if I'm not mistaken. And she played for 20 years. Nadal is still playing in his 23rd year. Though I believe Chris still has the longest clay court match winning streak.

[@veraluxmundi2032]

What a great champion Evert was. If she had played AO and FO through the mid to late 70s, her slam haul would likely be 24+.

[@JLZR1]

THE most consistent player ever..Chris's overall stats are astonishing...she is, to some of us, an inspiration in both technique, temperament and class..... I consider it an honor to have watched her play many times ..

[@joso5554]

The legendary Chris Evert. Probably the most elegant female player ever. Purity and unbeatable consistency.

[@pjesf]

YES! And she showed a lot if girls that they could play sports and still be feminine. This was at a time when most female athletes were like the East German shotputters. Also very lovely and graceful was Evonne

[@gerardmackay8909]

@@pjesf Women athletes shouldn’t have to pass your ‘totty test’ to be admirable. East German shot putters were drugged up to their eyeballs, Martina Navratilova, for example, was not!

[@liw8718]

​@@pjesfWhen Chris arrived on the scene, a lot of the women on the tour looked like Billie Jean and Rosie Casals and I'll leave it at that

[@pjesf]

@@liw8718 And Margaret Court. I know; I was there 😂

[@yussepig6629]

She made the dh backhand a thing of grace and beauty

[@chrisandersen5635]

Let that sink in. Phillipe Chatrier handed Chrissy her first ever Grand Slam Trophy. Legends. WOW. Then she won a boatload more in her career. We can celebrate both by looking forward and looking back with respect and appreciation.

[@lenwelch2195]

Graf won her first slam in 87 French and her last was French 99, Martina’s first slam was Wimbledon 78 and her last was Wimbledon 90. Everts first was 74 French and her last was 86 French. All 3 women won their first and last slams at same event and all three won their first and last exactly 12 yrs apart. Ironic. Serena won her first in 99 and her last in 2017. That’s 18 yrs apart. Miraculous.

[@waynedaves5089]

the backand of evert is teh most influential shot of the last century.

[@tobiasisback4605]

Yes. This.

[@matthewbuck5067]

The perfect controlled aggressor. At her best, Evert rarely went for the wrong shot. She had the highest tennis IQ in an era where that was vital for success. Virtually had no weakness (and her volley was much better than people gave her credit for). Thank you Chrissie for all of your contributions to the game 😊

[@jondavwal13]

I think with the modern racket technology she would have been the female Djokovic (probably without the serve). She changed direction on the ball like only he does and ran down everything. She wasn't as fast but her anticipation was uncanny. Her drop shot and lob were perfection. And her passing shots were actually the best in history. As mentioned above, her volley was very underrated. She used to beat Navratilova when she took the net away from her. How she got certain balls past great net rushers was a thing of beauty.

[@veraluxmundi2032]

She and Seles had astonishing passing shots. I would say Evert had the best lob, one of the best dropshots, the best and most influential backhand and the best mind in tennis history. Her overhead was also decent - consistent and well placed always, not a weakness at all.

[@pjesf]

@@veraluxmundi2032Yeah both she and Monica hit closer to the lines than anyone I’ve seen since 👍🏻

[@mrxman581]

​@@jondavwal13Both her volley and serve improved over time.

[@trevorpugh6475]

Oh Chrissie! 👉☺Such talent, poise, and mental strength…plus NO tantrums or swearing on court… the very epitome of a true champion! ❤

[@mrxman581]

Indeed, and no obnoxious loud grunting.

[@Ricksasha]

I have collected over 500 of Chrissie's matches for a reason - she was so great to watch and learn how to play tennis. Such a classy, wonderful lady.

[@miragedesert8405]

One of the greatest achievements in sports and tennis history

[@frankburns456]

Iga might have the Game power now but no one will ever be as graceful on the Chatrier Court in Paris than Christine Marie Evert Paris in 1974 was the start of beautiful love 🥰 Affair with Paris for & still remains the Queen of the Red Clay at Roland Garros

[@pablofrank2466]

The Queen of Clay. She had a 125 match winning streak on clay from 1973-1979. Had she not played World Team Tennis in the 1970s, she would have definitely added to her 7 singles titles at Roland Garros.

[@mrxman581]

And Aussie Open. Many top players would skip it because of where it was on the calendar back then. Chris didn't play it for many years.

[@pablofrank2466]

@@mrxman581 Very true. Chris only played the Australian Open 6 times in her long career - reached the final all 6 times and won it twice.

[@Aliceteacup]

She is still the reigning queen of clay. 👸🏆You’re the best. ❤

[@mrxman581]

Her three killer strokes were her drop shot, lob, and of course, her amazing two-handed backhand. Three weapons when many players only have one, maybe two. She admitted after she retired that she should have worked on making her serve more of a weapon. She basically saw it as a way to simply start the point. A fourth weapon, was her concentration and focus which resulted in an amazing consistency in her game. A fifth weapon could have been her anticipation. She wasn't the best mover, but she always seemed to manage to be in position to hit the ball extremely well.

[@tobiasisback4605]

Billie Jean King said of Evert that “on court she has a heart that's even colder than mine”. 😅 There's often a technical or fitness innovation that leads to the kind of domination that Evert had in her day. In her case I'd say it was her two-handed backhand. Just more powerful, steadier and more lethal than anyone else's backhand at the time. She could get more acute angles too on the passing shot. But agree, her lob and dropshot were also killers.

[@davidj182]

I think her anticipation was a key factor in her success. She also intuitively knew her opponents’ weaknesses and attacked them relentlessly. Another success factor was her cold, icy, confident stare. Opponents crumbled.

[@tobiasisback4605]

@@davidj182 Yes.

[@davidj182]

@@tobiasisback4605 I agree. The 2-handed backhand played a big role in her domination. I loved her lobs too. She had Margaret Court reeling in shock by successfully lobbing over her. Until then, no one else had managed to do that. Those were offensive lobs, played from a position of strength. It rattled Margaret Court.

[@tobiasisback4605]

@@davidj182 Yes! It shook her to the core. She looked rattled and frustrated when they played.

[@kosta88816]

Love Chris Evert 💙

[@gillesderais834]

Chris Legend Evert

[@IAmRose218]

Happy Anniversary!

[@davidpatrickjones-mccain8302]

You gotta love her. Such an elegant champion and woman for the ages.

[@jm7804]

Chris also has a 125 match winning streak on clay spanning 6 years. She has 70 titles on clay alone, which is almost as many titles as Serena has on all surfaces combined. 22 total losses on clay in a 20 year career. No one will ever surpass any of those records. 100 years from now they will still stand.

[@markwhitman9029]

YES Chris"s records probably will stand for a long time to come! Remember World Team Tennis kept her from many other Slam tournaments or she could have possibly had 10 total French Opens and a few more Wimbledons. Rafa is men's GOAT and Chrissie the women clay court GOAT!

[@rajusaha855]

The depth of clay courts tennis in Evert era was joke. Look at the draw, there was hardly any clay court specialists. Martina at her best on clay only in 80's. Tbh Graf 6 French open titles came in argurably the toughest clay court era in WTA with the like of Seles, ASV, Pierce, Martinez & even the likes of Hingis & Sabatini were good & consistence on clay were her main rival. So statistically Evert is the GOAT on clay but in terms of level of play & competition they faced Graf was better.

[@jm7804]

@@rajusaha855 When will you stop bemoaning Graf's second place status on clay? My guess is never. It's not a good look. Evert played the French 13 times and won it 7 times. She played the USO the 3 years it was held on clay and won all 3 titles. Add them together and she played 16 slams on clay and won 10 of them. Those are Nadal-like numbers. Steffi played the French 17 times and won it 6 times. She is a very distant second place. You just need to deal with the fact that Graf isn't the best at any slam or on any surface. Crying about it for 25 years doesn't make it disappear.

[@rajusaha855]

​​​​@@jm7804oh i am not crying as Graf had far better records & better dominance in all surface (except clay) than Evert. Evert was lucky that us open from 1975-77 was played on clay on which she had no competition. Give the same field to Steffi, tbf she would have won 10 French open titles against giants like Muruzova, Ruzici, Jausevic, Turnbull & 18 years old fat Navratilova in 70's😂😂. The clay court field in 70's for WTA was absolutely horrible. Now imagine had Australian open was played on grass during Steffi's prime. Seles would have zero titles & Graf would have atleast 7 Australian open titles.

[@gwp5066]

@@rajusaha855 correct. why does one have to be The Best? comparing "apples and oranges" to use a cliche. I think Chris Evert would acknowledge, and she did in that interview, that the level of competition, the equipment, etc was on a much lower level when she won many of those championships.

[@lenwelch2195]

What is ironic for Martina Chris and Steffi all won their first and last slam in same event , all 12 yrs in between. Chris 74-86, Martina 78-90 wimbledons. Graf 87-90 French open.

[@tobiasisback4605]

True 😊

[@MrMjolnir69]

Best example for Footwork ever, her Graf Connors Federer textbook movement kids.

[@petergasper6593]

The greatest clay court player of her generation! And to think she skipped the FO in 76, 77 and 78 when she was unbeaten on clay. She surely would have added another 3 FO to her collection had she played. Her loss in 73 to MC was also one that she really shouldn't have lost, given she was up in the final set. I also wonder sometimes about the semi-final losses in 81 and 82...uncharacteristic for CE. All said and done, she has won more FOs than any other female tennis player and still has the best win-loss ratio on clay of any player. IS might have a better win-loss record at the FO now....but let's see how she fares in 10 years from now 🤔

[@MasterDelon-c1z]

Liked your comment. The reason she skipped the French in '76, '77, and '78 was because she promised Billie Jean she would play World Team Tennis. She also realized that the French Open field in '74 and '75 was very poor (all the good players were playing WTT). Trivia fact: Court actually has a higher winning percentage in French finals than Evert, and has a grand total of 13 French titles in singles, doubles and mixed. Only Nadal has more with 14. Cheers.

[@joe-zp7ge]

i grew up watching chris evert. to me the greatest,most elegant,fabulous player ever. she played with a wood raquet which i would love to see these women players do today

[@decimustv4257]

Some people age more in 10 years than she has in 50.

[@alancawfield6549]

The racquets they used back then were closer in size to a badminton racquet than a modern day tennis racquet.

[@mrxman581]

And heavier than today's racquets.

[@alancawfield6549]

@@mrxman581 Shows why the game was so different back then , be impossible to play shots as powerful as the players can today.

[@DavidJohnson-yq4nz]

True legend

[@pjesf]

Chris said that Olga hugged her at net. Perhaps she did a bit later but that handshake was cold as ice. I’ve never understood that - when friends play against each other. Yeah, someone is going to be disappointed but for me the poker face ended with the last point. That guy was still my friend and I could sincerely congratulate him if he won.

[@Right902]

I agree, but, then again, losing to your friend in front of the entire world in a Grand Slam final 6-1, 6-2 can be brutal. I'm thinking Olga didn't want to deal with anyone. Probably, just wanted to get back to the hotel and sulk.

[@pj-fx7gx]

@@Right902 Good point 👍🏻

[@mrxman581]

That was up to Olga. Chris would never want to look like she was over celebrating. I'm sure they hugged in private, maybe the lockerroom away from the media.

[@alfredbenedek3398]

🌹 - YES CHRISSIE, I CLEARLY REMEMBER, ALMOST - ALMOST ALL OF YOUR FRENCH OPEN VICTORYS. 🌷 YOU WERW& TO ME, YOU STILL ARE, SIMPLY THE BEST. THE VERY BEST. - BETTER THAN ANY ONE . . . . 💐 - TAKE CARE. 🏵

[@tobiasisback4605]

She was the greatest player with a wooden racket. If she had played the FO/AO in the 70s at her peak she'd have 22+ slams.

[@johnm7328]

If she had played the French throughout the 70's, she would have the most Grand Slam titles of all time, male or female.

[@liw8718]

I don't blame Chris for thinking about the previous year's final against Margaret Court. She was one game away from taking out Margaret and win the title. Instead she let Margaret back in the match. Otherwise Chris would be looking at EIGHT French titles instead of seven

[@johnjones5424]

A great lady!

[@DouglasMcCulley]

when did they get the big trophy you later held- remember Martina hoisting it an 84 and you in 85,86????

[@paules3437]

Very classy, to be sure. She is incorrect to characterize the fact that her most meaningful wins where both at Roland Garros. There's nothing IRONIC about it. It maybe coincidental, but not ironic. Irony means the very thing you expect to take you in one direction ends up taking you in the opposite direction. For example, it might be called ironic if, at the rise of Navratilova, Evert had decided to play ONLY an attacking, volleying net game only to find in the finals that Navratilova had abandoned her own net strategy and worked on HER baseline game. Each was striving to best the other with the other's natural game, and each was surprised that the other had taken the same path, so to speak, to arrive at opposite goals.

[@BLACKTREAT]

Stop playing with your 👄 Chris.

[@tdtdtd1826]

Poor Chris aging so badly