35 years ago: Navratilova's Grand Slam streak hits six in New York

From the slick grass of Wimbledon and the Australian Open to the hard courts of the US Open, Martina Navratilova dominated the 1983 season, posting an 86-1 record, with her only hiccup coming at the French Open, where she fell in the fourth round.

The Czech-born American made up for that the following year by capturing the championship in Roland Garros over her longtime rival Chris Evert to become the titleholder at all four majors and complete a non-calendar year Grand Slam. Another victory at Wimbledon—again over Evert in the final—made it five majors won in a row, raising expectations for the US Open.

After a loss in a third-set tiebreak to the American teenage prodigy Tracy Austin in 1981, Navratilova lost in the quarterfinals the next year, before finally claiming the top prize at the tournament in 1983, raising her record in major finals against Evert at the time to 5-2.

Facing each other for the first time in the early 1970s, Evert dominated their encounters throughout the decade, winning twice as many matches in their head-to-head battles. It wasn’t until Navratilova went through a complete rededication to the game, making over both her body and mind to usher in a new era in women’s tennis. Her attacking style, bolstered by her increased athleticism and unparalleled instincts around the net, took her to the top of the game and enabled her to gain traction against the Floridian as she entered New York level in their matches at 30 wins apiece.

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At the ‘84 US Open, Navratilova opened up play against her countrywoman Lea Antonopolis, the 1977 junior Wimbledon champion, and eased past her to set up a meeting with another former teenage standout.

Andrea Leand, who debuted on the WTA rankings list at No. 18— a record—had advanced to the round of 16 in New York for three straight years, from 1981 to 1983. That solid streak came to an end at the hands of Navratilova, who posted her second 6-4, 6-2 scoreline in a row. As impressive as the first two rounds were for the world No. 1, the third was even greater as she defeated South African Jennifer Mundel 6-0, 6-0. In the fourth round, American Barbara Potter pushed Navratilova the furthest to that point before falling 6-4, 6-4.

As the tournament dwindled down to the final stages, Navratilova’s opponent in the final eight was someone she had knowledge of peripherally, who was hailed as a potential successor to her in Czechoslovakia.

Helena Sukova, whose mother was a former Wimbledon finalist, was a 6’2” 19-year-old who served and volleyed her way to the first major quarterfinal of her young career, posting wins against two top-10 seeds along the way. However, she couldn’t threaten her more experienced foe, who won yet another match in straight sets. After defeating the Australian Wendy Turnbull in the semifinals, Navratilova found herself in another major final to once again face the second seed Evert.

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With the championship match sandwiched between the men’s semifinals, Navratilova and Evert had to wait for their battle to begin after Ivan Lendl eked past young Australian Pat Cash in five sets to kick off “Super Saturday.”

When the two finally did take the court, it was Evert that came out the steadier player as she accomplished something she wasn’t able to do in Paris or London that year: win the first set.

After taking a 6-4 lead, Evert—who had lost 12 straight matches to her biggest rival—had momentum on her side. Forced to dig out of the hole, Navratilova held steady as she faced break points late in the second set and turned the tables on Evert by taking it 6-4 to level the match.

In the third set, Navratilova staked herself to an early break and rode that to a 5-4 lead. Serving for the match, up 40-15, Navratilova volleyed Evert’s reply down the line, setting herself up for a half-volley into the open court to clinch the championship.

The victory was Navratilova’s sixth in a row at the Grand Slam level, further extending a run of dominance rarely seen before or since.

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