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Ready to return Navratilova excited about being back in action
Posted: Monday May 22, 2000 09:43 PM
MADRID, Spain (AP) -- A day before returning to pro tennis, Martina Navratilova insisted that she's not out to win, just to enjoy herself. "We hope to do well, obviously, but winning was not on my mind when I decided to play. I thought it'd be fun," 43-year-old Navratilova said after a training session at the Villa de Madrid WTA tournament that started Monday. Navratilova retired 5 1/2 years ago. Before that she won 167 singles titles, more than any man or woman, and 165 doubles. Teaming up with South Africa's Mariaan de Swardt, Navratilova is expected to play her first doubles match Tuesday. It was not immediately known who will be their opponents. Navratilova decided on participating in Madrid as part of her preparations for Wimbledon. She also plans to take part in the Roland Garros later this month. But she said she had no expectations to win Wimbledon. "I'm not even thinking about winning that," she said. "Right now I'm just thinking about our first match here.....Hopefully I'll win a few matches and then I'll get out there on the grass again." Winner of 19 Wimbledon titles, a victory in the doubles would tie Navratilova with Billie Jean King for most championships won at the All England Club. "I'm playing OK, it's going to be very nervous for me but hopefully I'll be all right," she said. She said she had decided to return playing after finding a good doubles partner and given that she was playing team tennis anyway. "Last year and this year I feel physically fit and I have a good partner so I thought 'why not?'" said Navratilova. Lindsay Davenport, who won the Madrid Open last year, pulled out of the Spanish tourney at the last minute because of a back injury suffered in Italy last week. Her absence places France's Mary Pierce as No. 1 seed in the $170,000 clay-court tournament followed by Amy Frazier of the United States. Japan's Ai Sugiyama is No. 3 and American Lisa Raymond is fourth seed. In opening-round games Monday, Croatia's Iva Majoli defeated Patricia Wartusch of Austria 6-3, 5-7, 7-5 while Spain's Gala Leon easily beat Meghann Shaughnessy, of the United States, 6-0, 6-1.
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