Conchita Martinez stood the test of time
How many of today's WTA players will hang in there for 18 years? The odds are increasingly against it, even if the calendar is shortened.
That sheer durability is part of what made Conchita Martinez's career distinctive. Her timeline spans two or three eras in women's tennis. She played then-33-year-old Chris Evert as a 16-year-old in 1988, then at the age of 33 she faced then-16-year-old Nicole Vaidisova last year. Martinez's year-end ranking was inside the top 40 in all but one of her 18 seasons on the women's tour, and she maintained a year-end top 10 ranking from 1991-96.
Martinez had a winning record against Martina Navratilova (4-1), most famously, of course, defeating her in the 1994 Wimbledon final to carve up the stereotype that Spanish players couldn't win on grass. Other leading players of the era handled Martinez better. She was 1-20 against Monica Seles, 1-13 against Steffi Graf and 4-14 against her great Spanish rival Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, and never defeated either of the Williams sisters in eight tries.
Organizers of the Acura Classic outside San Diego honored Martinez, who lives part-time in nearby Cardiff, in a tribute Tuesday night with speeches and gifts including a motor-scooter presented to her on stadium court. She thanked tournament officials for giving her "the opportunity to say goodbye to my American fans and my fans right here near my home … I'm really going to miss the friends I have made all over the world.''
Yet Martinez persevered through 2005 to win her first tournament in five years and finished the season at No. 32 -- still the highest-ranked singles player in her country. She ended the season ranked ninth in doubles and might come back to play the tandem game, following the lead of the ageless Navratilova and that of Rennae Stubbs, 35, of Australia, one of the few players still around who turned pro before Martinez did.
ESPN.com
We also found lovely comments by true tennis fans, like mpcardenas
(thanks for photos and comments Mary!)
The tribute to Ms. Martinez was really
sweet. There were a ton of photographers
there, so hopefully you've already found
lots of photos online (mine won't be uploaded
tonight-too tired!)
San Diego did not give Ms. Martinez
a Harley; she got some Honda scooter.
But the fun part was that it was driven
onto the court by Ms. Tarabini!
Conchita gave a little speech at the end,
and thanked her partner of 5 years, and
said, "I love you." It was all very sweet
and nice. She said she wouldn't be happy
without her.
It's really lovely to see how much Conchita Martínez is loved around the world, by both fans and journalists.
Thanks for everything Conchita!
We hope to see you playing doubles again very soon!
