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Navratilova: Sharapova Wasn't In Tennis to Win Popularity Contests




The legendary Martina Navratilova—one of the fiercest competitors in tennis history—praised Maria Sharapova in a column she penned for WTATennis.com.

Tennis Express

“You wouldn't have wanted her as your opponent, she wouldn't take her foot off the gas even for a moment,” Navratilova wrote of the 32-year-old Russian, who leaves the sport with five major titles and 36 WTA titles to her name.

The Russian announced her retirement last week after suffering through an injury-marred two and a half seasons that saw her plummet outside of the Top 300 in the rankings.

“Throughout her career, Sharapova marched to the beat of her own drum,” wrote Navratilova. “She wasn't in tennis to win popularity contests, whether with the public or her peers, and perhaps she wasn't always as appreciated as she could have been, but she did what she needed to win, and that worked for her.”

Navratilova points to her two Roland Garros titles and her dominance on clay from 2011 to 2015 as her crowning achievement. It certainly wasn’t the Russian's only claim to fame. Sharapova won Wimbledon as a 17-year-old and is still the youngest Ladies Singles champion at the All England Club. She also won the career Slam and is one of just six Open Era women to have achieved the feat.

More: Maria Sharapova's Legendary Career, By the Numbers

But her ability to evolve as a tour de force on the tennis court is best exemplified by the improvements she made on clay in her twenties.

“Those two titles at Roland Garros were an illustration of how Sharapova made the most of what she had, and how she adapted her game,” Navratilova wrote. “While Sharapova was hitting huge forehands and backhands, she knew that she wasn't the best all-round player so she worked at her game. She improved her drop-shot and her game at the net. Sharapova kept at it until clay became her best surface at the end - the French Open was the only major that she won twice.

Sharapova’s professionalism and her willingness to squeeze every ounce of talent out of her body are what made her great,” says the 18-time major champ.

“I'll remember Sharapova's career for her sheer competitiveness, for her never giving anything less than her absolute best,” she concluded.

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