WTA · Retired · United States

Martina Navratilova

Career-high ranking: 1

Player at a glance

For Martina Navratilova, this snapshot records 1,726 matches and 1,489 wins from 1972 through 2005. The highest verified singles ranking is world No. 1. The data records 18 Grand Slam singles titles and 174 tour titles. On Grass, the snapshot shows a 88.2% win rate across 357 matches.

Status: Retired
Age: Age 69
Height: 173 cm
Playing hand: Left-handed
Tour wins: 1489 / 1726
Tour titles: 174
Grand Slam titles: 18
Career win rate: 86.3%

Results by surface

Read each win rate together with its recorded match sample.

Carpet: 88.0%633 matches
Hard: 85.7%420 matches
Grass: 88.2%357 matches
Clay: 80.6%304 matches

Player at a glance

How they play

Martina Navratilova holds records of 167 WTA singles titles and 177 doubles titles. Her nine Wimbledon singles victories remain an emblem of attacking grass-court tennis and exceptional longevity.

A master of serve-and-volley, she followed a left-handed serve immediately to the net and claimed the angles first. Fitness training, sports psychology, and nutrition all became part of a performance system that sustained her long career.

Featured video

Wimbledon · Aug 21, 2026Navratilova vs Garrison · 1990 Wimbledon final highlights

Navratilova completed a women’s record ninth Wimbledon singles title in this final. It is an excellent view of serve-and-volley approach position and first-volley selection.

Watch on YouTube ↗

What to watch

If you are new to this player

After serve, watch how far she advances to make the first volley comfortable.
Notice when a volley is blocked into a difficult passing angle rather than struck for maximum speed.

For a closer look

Track the pattern in which a left-handed slice serve opens the court and the first volley goes to the opposite side.
On the net approach, compare the timing of her split step with the opponent’s impact.

Career timeline by age

Mar 6, 1972 · Age 15
First recorded tour match
The first main-draw tour match covered by the current data set.
Mar 6, 1972 · Age 15
First tour title
A verified tour-title milestone in this player’s career.
Jun 26, 1978 · Age 21
First Grand Slam singles title
A verified Grand Slam milestone in this player’s career.
Jul 10, 1978 · Age 21
First Wimbledon title and first world No. 1 ranking
She defeated Evert in the final to win her first major and rose to WTA world No. 1 for the first time.
Jan 2, 1984 · Age 27
Career-high ranking: No. 1
The highest position found in the available weekly singles rankings.
Jun 13, 2005 · Age 48
Most recent recorded match
The latest tour match included in the current snapshot.

Racquet and string history

Verified equipment history is being added

Pro paint jobs can differ from the frame underneath. We separate observed use, endorsements, and comparable retail models, with sources and dates.

Worth knowing

Navratilova faced Chris Evert 80 times in official matches and led the rivalry 43–37.
Her 1983 season—86 wins and one loss, a 98.9% win rate—remains one of the Open era’s defining records.

Verified sources

WTA Legends profileChecked Aug 21, 2026 · Confidence: High

What to borrow for your game

Copy the sequence of preparation, contact point, and recovery rather than only the final shot.
On Grass, identify the repeated starting position and purpose of the first two shots before borrowing the pattern.
Compare footage from different career stages to see how positioning and shot selection evolved.

Notable numbers

Reached a verified career-high singles ranking of world No. 1.
This page uses 1,726 recorded matches from the 1972–2005 seasons.
The snapshot records 32 Grand Slam finals and 18 titles.

Reviewed sources

A result-based profile built from surface results, rankings, titles, and playing hand. Missing shot-speed, spin-rate, and point-pattern data are not invented.

Player reference page ↗