Nine-time Wimbledon champion Martina Navratilova looked anything but a 47-year-old as she won her first round of qualifying at the Eastbourne tournament in London on Saturday with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over world number 78, Mara Santangelo of Italy.
Navratilova, who has won this pre-Wimbledon tournament 11 times in her career after making her debut in 1974, now faces Russia’s Elena Likhovtseva on Sunday as she continues her build-up towards Wimbledon where she has been granted a wild card into the main draw.
She had asked for a wild card into the qualifying tournament rather than the main draw so she could get in substantial practice on grass for her Wimbledon doubles assault next week.
”I wanted to play singles here last year but I had a bad heel, which didn’t let me run any long distances. As soon as I started playing singles points I was in trouble,” said the veteran.
”Now I have a little bit of a tweaky knee but everything else is good. It took a while to get on to her serve. Playing singles is so different, there are so many more options but the grass is a lot simpler for me. I don’t have to wonder should I come to the net or not.
”If I have to hit a ball hard I can, but you don’t want to give them hard balls, because that’s what they like.
”I’ve been out practising that more than I have in 10 years, hitting that first volley. That helped a lot to win that first game, which I didn’t do in the French, whereas today I was always ahead. I’ve played five or six matches in five years so if I’m a bit rusty I have good reason to be.”
Navratilova, who played in last month’s French Open but lost 6-1, 6-3 in the first round to Argentina’s Gisela Dulko, last played singles at Wimbledon in 1994 where she lost in the final to Conchita Martinez. — Sapa-AFP