"I can't pick...When I hear them call Steffi Graf the greatest, I say 'What am I, chopped liver?'": When Martina Navratilova weighed in on GOAT debate

Martina Navratilova once weighed in on the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) debate between herself and Steffi Graf. Navratilova also disclosed that while she had initially chased the label of the greatest, she eventually came to realize it was a "bunch of baloney."

Navratilova retired from professional tennis with 18 Grand Slam singles titles, tied with her arch-rival Chris Evert. She also set the Open Era record for most major titles overall, with 31 women's doubles and 10 mixed doubles trophies.

Furthermore, the Czech-American held the World No. 1 ranking for 332 weeks and won an Open Era record of 167 career singles titles, cementing her place as a legend of the sport.

Graf, meanwhile, surpassed Navartilova and Evert's tallies by clinching an Open Era record of 22 Major titles. She also completed the rare calendar year Golden Slam and broke Navratilova's record for most weeks as World No. 1, spending 377 weeks atop the WTA rankings. The German announced her shock retirement at the age of 30, shortly after triumphing at the 1999 French Open.

Despite her remarkable career, Steffi Graf called Martina Navratilova the "uncontested" GOAT, contending that the Czech-American's legacy was unmatched.

"For me she is the uncontested No. 1; she has left a mark on the sport like no one else," Steffi Graf told German news agency DPA.

Navratilova responded to the German's praise in a 1999 interview with The New York Times, expressing her appreciation for the "kind" words but rejecting that idea that anyone could definitively declare who was the greatest.

''It's kind of her to say that, but I don't see how you can really come out and say point blank who's the greatest. When I first started out, I wanted to be No. 1, and then I wanted to be the greatest of all time, but the closer I got, I realized it was a bunch of baloney," Navratilova said.

Martina Navratilova suggested that a group of select players, including herself, Steffi Graf, Chris Evert, Billie Jean King and Margaret Court, could be considered the greatest, but admitted that she couldn't choose between herself and Graf.

The 18-time Grand Slam champion disclosed that while she felt "embarrassed" when she was referred to as the greatest, she also got offended if Graf was given the label.

''What's true is that there is a definite group of great players, and she's in it, and I'm in it. Chris is there, and Billie Jean, and Margaret Court. But I can't pick between myself and Steffi. When people call me the greatest player ever, I get embarrassed, and when I hear them call Steffi the greatest, I say, 'Hey, wait a minute, what am I, chopped liver?'" she added.

"If you just go on Majors, then you have Serena Williams; If you go a different way, then it would be me or Steffi Graf" - Martina Navratilova on GOAT debate

The GOAT debate in women's tennis underwent a change with Serena Williams' rise, particularly after the American surpassed Steffi Graf's Grand Slam record by winning her 23rd Major title at the 2017 Australian Open.

In a 2020 interview with the Tennis Channel, Martina Navratilova asserted that while Williams had a claim to the GOAT title based on Majors, there was still an argument for herself, Graf or even Margaret Court.

"If you just go on majors, then you have Serena. If you go a different way, then it would be me or Steffi Graf, perhaps Margaret Court. It just depends how you want to measure that," Navratilova said.

Chris Evert has shared similar sentiments, naming Serena Williams, Martina Navaratilova and Steffi Graf as equally deserving of the GOAT title while giving special mention to the German's historic achievement of the calendar year Golden Slam.