Steffi Graf makes her stand clear on tennis, bolstered by Chris Evert & Martina Navratilova, being the biggest women's sport in the world

The 22-time Grand Slam champion Steffi Graf shared her opinion on tennis being the biggest women's sport in the world in a reel posted by the official handle of the Pickleball Slam on Instagram today.

The German player has been a big ambassador for promoting women's tennis worldwide. She talked about the evolution of tennis as a sport, and her inspiration behind taking it up as a career. Graf remarked:

"Tennis is probably the worldwide biggest women’s sport, other sports does not have that kind of female strengths. For me growing up with Billie Jean King, Martina Navratilova, and Chris Evert, for me it just felt so natural to look up to them, a lot of sports do not have that, they are still trying to find their way. I am extremely fortunate to grow up in the sport of tennis to have that strong female background and strengths of women.”

In 1973, Billie Jean King laid the foundation of the WTA, which revolutionized women’s tennis forever. It paved the way for players like Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert to walk down the path and create history. Hence, as she mentioned, it became easier for Graf’s generation to pick up the sport without hesitation.

Steffi Graf’s statements are even backed by numbers. The former World No.1 Iga Swiatek was the highest-paid female athlete of the year in 2023. The WTA is the richest women’s sports association in the world. Not only this, but Women’s Tennis is also broadcast in more than 200 countries, and the Grand Slams attract millions of people in viewership.

In 2023, WTA clocked one billion views, which is a record-breaking feat. Since 2007, there has been a pay parity in the prize money of the Grand Slams received by men and women. The popularity and the lucrative financial benefits attract many women around the world to pick up the sport. Therefore, 47% out of the 87 million active tennis players all around the world are women.

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Steffi Graf’s highly anticipated return to action in February 2025

Steffi Graf playing pickleball - Source: Getty

Tennis fans around the globe are excited to see Steffi Graf in action again but, in a different sport. Graf and Aggasi will be playing an event named Pickleball Slam 3 against Andy Roddick and Eugenie Bouchard.

The event is set to take place on February 16, 2025, in Las Vegas. This is the third edition of the event. Agassi won the previous two editions and is aiming for the third one alongside Graf who is also the defending champion of the second edition. They are up against Roddick who won the first edition, while Bouchard is making her debut this season.

The two teams will be fighting for the purse of one million dollars. It will surely be a thrilling competition to look out for.