Lloyd-Navratilova Rivalry Makes Both Players Better

Chris Evert Lloyd believes the friendly but intense rivalry between her and Martina Navratilova has made both of them better tennis players.

“I’m a better player now than when I was dominating women’s tennis, when I was winning every game,” Lloyd said Tuesday, still basking in her victory over Navratilova in the final of the Virginia Slims of Florida.

“I think I influenced Martina to develop her groundstrokes,” said Lloyd, who at age 30 has won at least one Grand Slam tournament every year since 1974. “And she’s pushing me to work on my serve and volleys.

“We’ve had a great rivalry, plus we have respect for each other.”

The right-hander from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and the Czechoslovakian-born Navratilova, a left-hander who became an American citizen in 1981, have met 62 times in their career--the longest rivalry in tennis history. And with Lloyd’s straight-set victory on Sunday, each player has now won 31 times.

It was December, 1982, in the championship match of the Australian Open when Lloyd stopped Navratilova. The baseliner from Florida then lost 13 straight to her archrival, including the 1984 finals at both Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, before she finally defeated Navratilova on Sunday.

“I hope it happens again,” Lloyd smiled when congratulated on her victory. “I’d like to have six months to savor this.”

Then she became serious, just as she does on the court where she has captured 16 Grand Slam tournament singles titles.

“The U.S. open, I think, really showed me something,” she said of her 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 loss to Navratilova. “When it came down to a few big points, I lacked the nerve . . . It was uncharacteristic.

“Chris Evert never choked a match. She would always come from behind.

“I wanted it so badly that I got nervous. My emotions entered into it.”

At the Australian Open, Navratilova was upset by young Helena Sukova of Czechoslovakia in the semifinals, a loss that halted her record-breaking 74-match victory streak and opened the way for Lloyd to capture her only Grand Slam singles crown of the year.

“There’s been talk that since the U.S. Open she (Navratilova) has played not to lose, rather than to win,” Lloyd said. “Despite my winning our last match, Martina’s still No. 1.

“When Martina’s really highly motivated, she’s still so tough to beat.”

Lloyd, who ruled women’s tennis until Navratilova came into her own in the last four years, said she understands her rivals’ problem, especially when working on a winning streak. After all, it was Lloyd’s 55-match winning string that Navratilova crushed in 1984.

“It’s a relief to lose, and you can start all over again,” Lloyd said. “A person can only handle so much preview.”

The two are top-seeded in the Lipton International Players Championship, a new two-week event which begins next week in Delray Beach. And they will seeded first and second again in the Virginia Slims Championships, which will be held at New York’s Madison Square Garden March 18-24.

“I really believe that up to now I haven’t reached my peak,” Lloyd said. “What’s been frustrating is that I feel myself improving every year, but I’m still No. 2.

“I’m No. 2 and I have to go after No. 1. Martina and I are going to play a lot this year.”