The Graf–Sabatini rivalry was a
tennis rivalry between
Steffi Graf
Stefanie Maria Graf ( , ; born 14 June 1969) is a German former professional tennis player. Widely regarded as one of the greatest tennis players of all time, she was ranked world No. 1 for a record 377 weeks and won 22 major singles titles, ...
and
Gabriela Sabatini
Gabriela Beatriz Sabatini (; born 16 May 1970) is an Argentine-Italian former professional tennis player. A former world No. 3 in both singles and doubles, Sabatini was one of the leading players from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, amassing 41 ...
, who played each other on 40 occasions between 1985 and 1995. Graf was the
world No. 1, and Sabatini reached a career high of No. 3. Both are
Major
Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...
champions, Graf winning 22 titles, and Sabatini won her only major title at the
1990 US Open over Graf. They also teamed in doubles, reaching three French Open finals and winning the
1988 Wimbledon crown.
[Philip, Robert. (2003-06-16]
Philip on Monday: Sabatini smiles again after tennis misery
Telegraph. Retrieved on 2010-12-14.
In Grand Slams, they met 12 times, three of them in finals. Graf leads 11–1. In 1988, Graf beat Sabatini in the semifinals of the
French Open
The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...
, the
US Open final, and the
Olympic
Olympic or Olympics may refer to
Sports
Competitions
* Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896
** Summer Olympic Games
** Winter Olympic Games
* Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...
final to complete the calendar-year
Golden Slam
The Grand Slam in tennis is the achievement of winning all four major championships in one discipline in a calendar year, also referred to as the "Calendar-year Grand Slam" or "Calendar Slam". In doubles, a team may accomplish the Grand Slam p ...
. In the
1991 Wimbledon final. Sabatini was two points away from capturing the singles title, but Graf took the match 8–6 in the deciding set.
[Finn, Robin. (1991-07-07]
Tennis – Graf Reclaims Her Grit And Title – NYTimes.com
Select.nytimes.com. Retrieved on 2010-12-14.
Graf and Sabatini first met in 1985, and by the end of 1987, had met a total of 11 times, Graf winning all of them. Sabatini defeated Graf 11 times in the next 21 matches they played from 1988 to 1992, with the Argentine going on a five-match winning streak and Graf on a four-match winning streak. Sabatini then lost the final eight matches they played from 1992 to 1995. According to Sabatini, they had a good relationship off the court, but were never close friends.
On September 25, 2004, Graf defeated Sabatini 6-1, 7-5 in an exhibition match in Berlin, Germany. They met the following year at an exhibition match in Mannheim, Germany on October 15, 2005, where Graf again beat Sabatini in straight sets 6-4, 6-2.
Graf introduced Sabatini during the 2006
International Tennis Hall of Fame
The International Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. It honors both players and other contributors to the sport of tennis. The complex, the former Newport Casino, includes a museum, grass tennis courts, an indo ...
Induction on July 15, 2006.
List of all matches
Graf–Sabatini (29–11)
Breakdown of the rivalry
*Hard courts: Graf, 11–5
*Clay courts: Graf, 10–4
*Grass courts: Graf, 3–0
*Carpet courts: Graf, 5–2
*Grand Slam matches: Graf, 11–1
*Grand Slam finals: Graf, 2–1
*Year-End Championships matches: Graf, 3–1
*Year-End Championships finals: Graf, 1–0
*Fed Cup matches: Graf, 1–0
*All finals: Graf, 10–6
*All matches: Graf, 29–11
*Florida matches: Sabatini, 8-2
See also
*
List of tennis rivalries
In tennis history there have been a number of notable rivalries. This is a list of some of the greatest rivalries.
For the pre-1991 eras, complete statistics on all matches is difficult to obtain in definitive form. In many years there were sign ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Graf-Sabatini rivalry
Tennis rivalries
Steffi Graf