Chris Evert Upset, Ending 18-Yr. Grand Slam Career : She Loses in Two to Garrison

Chris Evert’s illustrious tennis career ended today in the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open, where she was beaten by Zina Garrison, 7-6, 6-2. The classy master of the two-handed backhand, with peerless baseline groundstrokes and a nearly stoic on-court demeanor, is leaving the tennis tour.

The end, at the tournament where she first made her mark by reaching the semifinals as a 16-year-old in 1971, was not a surprise. Garrison, seeded fifth, is ranked just behind Evert and beat Martina Navratilova in the same round last year. The crowd clearly was on the 34-year-old Evert’s side. But time no longer is.

Evert’s final shot at a major grand slam event--she won 18 of them--was a forehand return of serve into the net. She shook hands with Garrison, walked to her courtside seat and got her equipment together as the fans gave her a standing ovation.

Finally, Evert stood, her tennis bag over her shoulder, and waved once to the crowd. As the fans roared, she walked to Garrison, they hugged, and walked off together.

“I felt really sad,” Garrison said. “I knew I was beating a champion we will never get to see again.

“When match point was over, I sat down and a tear came to my eye.”

Earlier in the tournament, Evert became the first player with 100 victories in the Open. When she routed 12th-seeded Monica Seles 6-0, 6-2 in the quarterfinals for her 101st win, it seemed the six-time Open champion was peaking for a last hurrah.

But Garrison, storming back from a 2-5 hole in the first set, crashed the party. She won four straight games, then took the tie-breaker 7-1.

Garrison, 25, tempered her serve-and-volley style somewhat, but won most of her big points by coming to the net.

She broke Evert in the third game of the second set, but Evert broke right back. Despite the urging of the 20,901 fans not wishing to see a star extinguished, Evert was broken again in the fifth and seventh games and Garrison served out the match.

Evert will represent the United States in the Federation Cup at Tokyo next month. She might play in some other tournaments in the future, but her career on tour is over.

“If I want to go play in a tournament in Stuttgart, I will,” she said. “This is my last major tournament.”

Evert never expected to win this Open after devoting so little of her time to tennis this year.

“I wanted to make a good showing and enjoy it,” she said.

Good showings hardly describe what Evert brought to the sport. She took her first of four straight Opens in 1975 and also won in 1980 and ’82. Evert won the French Open seven times, including her last major title in 1986.

She has three Wimbledon and two French Open crowns.

Now ranked fourth, Evert was No. 1 or No. 2 steadily from 1975 through 1986. Her rivalry with Navratilova--who played the other quarterfinal tonight--was one of the most engaging in sports. Navratilova leads her close friend 43-37, but they won’t be meeting in any significant matches again.