Martina Navratilova

Two future Hall of Famers met as teenagers 50 years ago in an Akron tennis tournament. This is what happened.

“So when she won the tournament, we were driving home and my dad said, ‘Oh, let’s see the check,’ and she was like, ‘Uhhhhhh,’ ” Amer recalled. Evert regained her title in 1975 when the tournament moved to the Richfield Coliseum and became the Virginia Slims of Akron. Navratilova won 6-2, 6-2, finishing 43-37 in the series. I was shocked because the first set was 7-6 and then the second set was easy, but I remember at that point thinking, ‘This girl, if she lost weight and got into shape …’ She was a natural talent.” “She was a presence when she walked in,” Beattie said. At the family’s home after a match, the tennis star told her hosts that she had noticed them in the stands. All she had to do was hold her serve in the 12th game to win. Evert cruised to a 6-3 victory in the second set. “She was super sweet,” Amer said. “Most girls wore tennis dresses and skirts at that time, but she wore these shorts and had this tennis ball tucked in her waist. “She wore shorts,” Smith said. “The girls like honey and hot milk, sometimes together, sometimes separate, so I’ll have to get some honey.