Sabine Appelmans is surely one of the greatest female tennis players to represent Belgium. She went pro in 1998 and participated in three Olympics, reaching the quarter-finals in singles at the 1992 games. Appelmans won seven titles and got to the quarter-finals of the Australian Open in 1997, the same event which the bookies expect Ashleigh Barty to win in 2022. Sabine Appelmans was chosen as the captain of Belgium’s Fed Cup team in 2007, replacing Carl Maes. To remember her time in the spotlight, Betway spoke to Sabine Appelmans about her most challenging opponents throughout her career. This article discloses some of her insights about her toughest opponents, including arguably the finest female tennis player of all time and why they were so difficult to play against.
1. Steffi Graf
Stefanie Maria “Steffi” Graf is a well-known German tennis player and is widely considered one of the greatest of all time. Graf has won a stunning 22 Grand Slam titles in her career, coming at third behind Serena Williams and Margaret Court. Furthermore, she held the top spot in the world rankings for 337 weeks, a feat that any other player is yet to accomplish.
Steffi Graf is also the first to get the Golden Slam by gaining all Grand Slam singles titles and the Olympic gold medal in the same year. She is also the only player to win each major at least four times. Many tennis enthusiasts remember Graf for her versatility irrespective of the playing surface, great forehand drive, and excellent footwork. Indeed, Appelmans mentions Steffi’s outstanding forehand drive and footwork in this interview below.
Additionally, Sabine says Steffi was a complete player who she considered her icon. In addition, Sabine remembers their first duel and how challenging it was, emphasising that she won only one game.
2. Monica Seles
Appelmans ranks Monica Seles second in her list of players she played the toughest games against. Indeed, Seles beat her in every single game they played. Monica won eight Grand Slam singles titles representing Yugoslavia and one representing America. Also, she is a former world number one and was named by Time as one of the 30 legends of Women’s Tennis: Past, Present, and Future. Many tennis enthusiasts agree that she had the potential to be the most decorated player of all time if her career had not been derailed by a fan who stabbed her on the court when she was just 19 years old.
According to Sabine Appelmans, Monica was a fighter during games and was pretty skilled at using her two hands to play everything. Also, she remembers how Monica could get to all the balls and bring them back. Appelmans liked playing against Monica but considered her very tough because she failed to defeat her.
3. Dominique Monami
Monami comes in third on Appelmans’ list of opponents who gave her some of her toughest games. Dominique Monami is also Belgian and was the first-ever player from her country to rank in the WTA top 10. She also reached the Australian Open quarter-finals in 1997. Appelmans remembers how they were very close in the rankings and revealed that they were great friends. Also, she revealed that it wasn’t easy to play against a fellow Belgian, particularly one with whom she had a close friendship.
