"She knows she's losing the No. 1 & losing confidence" - When Gabriela Sabatini commented on Steffi Graf's 186-week reign coming to an end

Steffi Graf is one of the greatest tennis players to have ever lived. At the start of her career she rewrote the record books as she eased her way past an aging Chris Evert while also establishing herself as a challenger to Martina Navratilova, before achieving the Golden Slam in 1988.

The German, who retained her World No. 1 slot at the end of the 1990 season despite being pushed to the brink by Monica Seles, finally slid from the top rung after a dizzying 186-week reign in March 1991.

While Seles' incredible rise was one of the principal factors behind Graf's descent, her father's paternity scandal, which featured prominently in the German press at the time, contributed in no small measure.

Following a 6-4, 7-6 loss to Gabriela Sabatini in the final of the Virginia Slims of Florida, Steffi Graf lost the top spot in the women's game for the first time since August 1987. After the match, Sabatini expressed her thoughts about the change in very clear words.

"She knows she's losing the No. 1, and she's losing confidence. It's different when you are No. 1 and you feel it. I don't think she's feeling it," Sabatini said after a match in which Graf squandered 10 of 12 break points and committed 43 unforced errors.

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Steffi Graf and Gabriela Sabatini - A classic tennis rivalry for the ages

Graf dominated the head-to-head numbers against Sabatini

The two emerging players first met in 1985, just as Gabriela Sabatini was making a name for herself as a teenage prodigy. By the time the duo played the last of their 40 career matches against each other a decade later, Sabatini had registered a total of 11 wins against her rival.

It was a remarkable feat given that no player had beaten Steffi Graf as many times as Sabatini had.

Steffi Graf dominated the Beunos Aires-born player during the initial stages of the rivalry, winning a whopping 11 matches on the trot, before Sabatini notched up her first win in the final of the Virginia Slims of Florida in 1988.

Following a second consecutive triumph at Amelia Island the same year, Sabatini went down to Graf at the 1988 French Open, US Open, Seoul Olympics, and the 1989 Australian Open, before turning the tables at Amelia Island yet again.

The final of the 1990 US Open was a significant moment for Gabriela Sabatini, who managed her only Grand Slam win against Graf in New York. Four back-to-back wins at the 1990 Virginia Slims Championships, the 1991 Pan Pacific Open, the 1991 Virginia Slims of Florida final, and the Amelia Island Championships briefly swung the momentum Sabatini's way.

Following a couple of wins against Graf in 1992, Sabatini crashed to eight successive defeats against Steffi Graf before her retirement in 1996.