Graf–Sabatini rivalry

Graf–Sabatini rivalry

Steffi Graf and Gabriela Sabatini are retired professional tennis players who played each other on 40 occasions between 1985 and 1995. Steffi Graf was the world No. 1, whilst Sabatini reached a career high of No. 3. They are both Grand Slam Champions, the German winning 22 titles whilst Sabatini won her only Grand Slam title against Graf. The pair also teamed up to reach three French Open finals and won the 1988 Wimbledon crown.[1]

In Grand Slam tournament play the pair met 12 times, three of them being finals. Graf leads 11–1. In 1988, Steffi beat Sabatini in the semifinal of the French Open and the US Open final to complete the calendar year Grand Slam. Graf then made it a Golden Grand Slam by defeating the Argentine in the Olympic final as well.[2] The pair's most famous match undoubtably came in 1991 at Wimbledon. Sabatini was two points away from capturing her Wimbledon singles crown only for Steffi to fight back and take the match 8–6 in the deciding set.[1][3]

Graf and Sabatini first met in 1985 and by the end of 1987 the pair had met a total of eleven times, Graf winning all of them. Then Sabatini went on to beat Steffi 11 times in the next 21 matches they played between 1988 and 1992, with the Argentine going on a 5 match winning streak and Graf on a four match winning streak. Sabatini then lost the final eight matches they played between 1992 and 1995, and for the first three matches Sabatini struggled to win 6 games. According to Sabatini, the pair had a good relationship and would share things off the court, but they were never close friends.[1]

The individual rivalry between them became so huge that, at some matches, whenever momentum seemed to be swinging in Steffi's favor, some of her fans would break into a derisive chant parodying the Van Halen single, Jamie's Cryin'. It went, "Oh...Oh...Oh! Gabby's Dyin' " (as in Sabatini's "running out of gas"). On September 25, 2004, in their first meeting since the 1995 US Open semifinals, Graf dispatched Sabatini 6-1, 7-5, in an exhibition match played in Berlin, Germany. The two rivals met again the following year at an exhibition match in Mannheim, Germany on October 15, 2005, where Steffi beat Sabatini in straight sets 6-4, 6-2.


Head to head

Graf–Sabatini (29–11)

No.[4] Year Tournament Surface Round Winner Score
1 1985 Mahwah Hard SF Graf 4–6, 6–0, 6–3
2 1986 Virginia Slims Championships Carpet R16 Graf 6–0, 6–7, 6–2
3 1986 Indianapolis Clay F Graf 2–6, 7–6(5), 6–4
4 1987 Hilton Head Clay SF Graf 6–3, 2–6, 7–6(5)
5 1987 Amelia Island Clay SF Graf 6–2, 6–2
6 1987 Rome Clay F Graf 7–5, 4–6, 6–0
7 1987 French Open Clay SF Graf 6–4, 4–6, 7–5
8 1987 Wimbledon Grass QF Graf 4–6, 6–1, 6–1
9 1987 Fed Cup Hard Graf 6–4, 6–4
10 1987 Los Angeles Hard SF Graf 7–5, 7–5
11 1987 Virginia Slims Championships (2) Carpet F Graf 4–6, 6–4, 6–0, 6–4
12 1988 Boca Raton Hard F Sabatini 2–6, 6–3, 6–1
13 1988 Amelia Island (2) Clay SF Sabatini 6–3, 4–6, 7–5
14 1988 French Open (2) Clay SF Graf 6–3, 7–6(3)
15 1988 US Open Hard F Graf 6–3, 3–6, 6–1
16 1988 Olympic Games Hard F Graf 6–3, 6–3
17 1989 Australian Open Hard SF Graf 6–3, 6–0
18 1989 Amelia Island (3) Clay F Sabatini 3–6, 6–3, 7–5
19 1989 Berlin Clay F Graf 6–3, 6–1
20 1989 US Open (2) Hard SF Graf 3–6, 6–4, 6–2
21 1989 Virginia Slims Championships (3) Carpet SF Graf 6–3, 5–7, 6–1
22 1990 US Open (3) Hard F Sabatini 6–2, 7–6(4)
23 1990 Zurich Carpet F Graf 6–3, 6–2
24 1990 Worcester Carpet F Graf 7–6(5), 6–3
25 1990 Virginia Slims Championships (4) Carpet SF Sabatini 6–4, 6–4
26 1991 Tokyo Carpet QF Sabatini 4–6, 6–4, 7–6(6)
27 1991 Boca Raton (2) Hard F Sabatini 6–4, 7–6(6)
28 1991 Miami Hard SF Sabatini 0–6, 7–6(6), 6–1
29 1991 Amelia Island (4) Clay F Sabatini 7-5, 7-6(3)
30 1991 Wimbledon (2) Grass F Graf 6–4, 3–6, 8–6
31 1992 Miami (2) Hard SF Sabatini 3–6, 7–6(5), 6–1
32 1992 Amelia Island (5) Clay F Sabatini 6–2, 1–6, 6–3
33 1992 Wimbledon (3) Grass SF Graf 6–3, 6–3
34 1993 Miami (3) Hard SF Graf 6–0, 6–2
35 1993 Hilton Head (2) Clay SF Graf 6–0, 7–6(3)
36 1993 Berlin (2) Clay F Graf 7–6(3), 2–6, 6–4
37 1993 US Open (4) Hard QF Graf 6–2, 5–7, 6–1
38 1994 Montreal Hard QF Graf 7–5, 6–0
39 1995 French Open (3) Clay QF Graf 6–1, 6–0
40 1995 US Open (5) Hard SF Graf 6–4, 7–6(5)
Legend
Grand Slam
Tour Championships
Tier IV/V Tournaments

Breakdown of the rivalry

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Philip, Robert. (2003-06-16) Philip on Monday: Sabatini smiles again after tennis misery. Telegraph. Retrieved on 2010-12-14.
  2. Athlete – Steffi Graf. Olympic.org. Retrieved on 2010-12-14.
  3. Finn, Robin. (1991-07-07) Tennis – Graf Reclaims Her Grit And Title – NYTimes.com. Select.nytimes.com. Retrieved on 2010-12-14.
  4. Graf-Sabatini Head to Head
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