Natasha. What do we know about the most titled Belarusian tennis player? Famous Belarusian and Soviet tennis player: My main occupation now is to get high from life Relationships with my father

Famous Soviet and Belarusian tennis player. Honored Master of Sports of the USSR (1991). The first coach is Father Marat Nikolaevich Zverev.

Career

Played in Grand Slam finals 36 times in singles, doubles and mixed doubles (1+31+4)

Only four women in the history of women's tennis have won more than Zvereva (18 titles) at Grand Slam doubles tournaments - Martina Navratilova (31), Pam Shriver (22), Margaret duPont (21) and Margaret Smith Court (19).

In 1992-93, she won 6 consecutive Grand Slam doubles tournaments (with Gigi Fernandez), winning the so-called “non-classical” Grand Slam in doubles.

In 1992-94, from Roland Garros '92 to Wimbledon '94, she won 9 out of 10 Grand Slam doubles tournaments (with Gigi Fernandez), losing only in the semifinals of the US Open '93 to the pair Sanchez-Vicario / Sukova.

Four times (1992, 1993, 1994, 1997) she won 3 Grand Slam doubles tournaments per season.

Three times (1995, 1997 and 1998) she played in all the Grand Slam finals of the season in doubles.

She played in the Roland Garros finals in doubles 10 times in a row (1989-98).

She won Roland Garros as a pair four times in a row (1992-95).

She won Wimbledon in doubles four times in a row (1991-94).

She never managed to win the classic Grand Slam in doubles (all 4 tournaments in 1 season).

Bronze medalist at the 1992 Summer Olympics in doubles (with Leila Meskhi).

Participant in 4 Olympics - 1988, 1992, 1996 and 2000

Grand Slam victories (20)

Doubles (18)

Australian Open - 3 times: 1993, 1994, 1997

Roland Garros - 6 times: 1989, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997

Wimbledon - 5 times: 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1997

US Open - 4 times: 1991, 1992, 1995, 1996

Mixed doubles (2)

Australian Open - 2 times: 1990, 1995

The 1988 Roland Garros final between Steffi Graf and Natalia Zvereva was the shortest in the history of Grand Slam finals. Graf won 6-0 6-0, spending only 30 minutes on the entire match.

Natalya Zvereva. 20 Grand Slam trophies

On April 16, the famous Soviet tennis player Natalya Zvereva turns 40 years old. She won 84 trophies during her career and is considered one of the best doubles players of all time.

Just as great things are seen from a distance, so is the whole scale of achievements. Natalia Zvereva became clear only almost 10 years after the end of her career. Almost simultaneously, she first entered the Russian Tennis Hall of Fame (at the end of 2009 in the “Modern Masters” category), and a couple of months later into the international Hall of Fame.

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Natalya Maratovna Zvereva.

Born April 16, 1971.
Member of the Tennis Hall of Fame and the Russian Tennis Hall of Fame.
Beginning of career: 1985. End of career: 2003.
Height: 174 cm. Weight: 62 kg.
Prize money: $7,792,503.
Singles - 4 titles.
Doubles - 80 titles.
Mixed doubles - 2 titles.
Grand Slam tournaments: 20 titles (18 in doubles, 2 in mixed doubles): Australian Open - 5 (1990 (m), 1993, 1994, 1995 (m), 1997), Roland Garros - 6 (1989, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997), Wimbledon - 5 (1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1997), US Open - 4 (1991, 1992, 1995, 1996).
Bronze medal at the 1992 Olympics together with Leila Meskhi.
Finalist of Roland Garros 1988 in singles.
Highest single ranking position: 5 (May 22, 1989).
Highest position in pairs ranking: 1 (October 7, 1991). Was first for 124 weeks.

It is curious that the leaders of this museum in the city of Newport included the best doubles players of the 90s - Zvereva and Gigi Fernandez, as well as the famous male duet Mark Woodford / Todd Woodbridge. If the “Woodies” won 12 “helmets”, then Natalia accumulated exactly 1.5 times more - 14 out of 18 were won in a duet with Fernandez, two more with Larisa Savchenko and one each with Pam Shriver And Martina Hingis.

Natalya teamed up with Gigi in 1992, having already won two slams with Savchenko and played in four more finals - an amazing result for a girl who had just turned 21 years old. In 1991, the famous Shriver, she had 20 wins in doubles at majors in the 80s. They conquered New York on their first try, but for Pam this was the last major success. She seemed to pass the baton to the young Zvereva, who was to dominate the new decade. It’s interesting that in the ’91 final, Shriver and Zvereva beat Savchenko and Jan Novotnu, and two years later Natasha and Pam were already on opposite sides of the net in the decisive match - the Belarusian celebrated the victory.

After a short collaboration with Shriver, today's hero of the day began performing with another American - Beatriz Fernandez. Gigi, as she is known throughout the world, had been playing for almost 10 years by that time, but excelled in only three “slams”. However, their duet with Natalia immediately turned out to be strong: they, having just started performing together, won six majors in a row, but, alas, three each in the 92 and 93 seasons. That is, they never got a full-fledged Grand Slam submitted. At the same time, the girls were close to him two more times: in 1994 and 1997, they successively won the Australian Open, Roland Garros and Wimbledon, but they could not put an end to the US Open. They were the strongest in New York four times, but only in those years when they no longer claimed the Grand Slam.

Natalia had the most real chance in 1997 - she played in all four finals for the second time, but in 1995 she and Fernandez lost in Australia, immediately losing hopes of conquering the four peaks. In the 97 season, Zvereva won in Melbourne with Martina Hingis, and then returned to Fernandez, with whom she became the strongest on the courts of Roland Garros and Wimbledon. If previously Zvereva, after victories in Australia, France and England, lost in the USA in the semi-finals, this time she managed to reach the final, but Lindsay Davenport and Yana Novotna were never allowed to reach the summit. Davenport, who often crossed Natalia's path and whom she most often beat, became her partner in the 1998 season. The union turned out to be successful and unsuccessful at the same time: they played in five finals over the course of two years, but could not win. In all cases, Hingis ended up on the other side of the net; in 1999, the Swiss won together with Anna Kournikova.

If Kournikova became the first Russian swallow on the world tennis horizon, then Zvereva was and remains the most successful Soviet tennis player. At the end of her career, Natalya even managed to play a little with Anna and won with her in 2000 at a tournament in Hamburg, this was the penultimate title of the Belarusian in her career. The 80th anniversary victory came two years later with Martina Navratilova. The pair Zvereva and Fernandez were second only to the duo of Martina and Shriver in the number of joint titles - they won the Grand Slam tournaments 20 times. “In the 90s, Natalia and Gigi were, without a doubt, the best couple in the world,” says Pam. - Fernandez was the best player at the net at that time, she understood the game perfectly. Natalya, with her top spins, dribbling strikes, incredible angles and candles, could torture any opponent. They were so different and complemented each other perfectly, which is why their duet was incredibly strong.”

Navratilova also always had great respect for Natalia: “Yes, I must admit that my pairing with Pam was stronger, but our game was distinguished by power, and Zverev and Fernandez took on grace and subtlety. I think that our achievements can be compared.” True, unlike Navratilova, Zverev was not very successful in her singles career. Although everything started out great: at the age of 15 she won junior Wimbledon, and the next year she repeated her success.

Blitz (German tennis magazine, May 1998).

- Who is your most inconvenient opponent?
- I think it's me.

- What do you like to listen to most?
- Any Led Zeppelin songs. You know, I'm not so young anymore.

-Who is your favorite actor or actress?
- I adore Jack Nicholson. And not for the reason that I like older men!

- What three things will you take with you to a desert island?
- Water, food... and an amazing guy.

-What do you hate most?
- People who hide their true selves and wear masks.

- What are your favorite hobbies in your free time?
- I like to cook, listen to music and read. Especially Russian classics.

- What are you most proud of?
- Victories in Grand Slam tournaments.

- What would you have become if you had not chosen a career as a tennis player?
“I think I would be the biggest loser on earth in that case.”

At the age of 17, Natalya reached the final of Roland Garros as an adult, but she was unable to show herself there. In just half an hour, Steffi Graf won - 6:0, 6:0 in the shortest Grand Slam final in history. “I'm burned out. I don’t know why, I still can’t understand it, but I demanded too much of myself, and this responsibility crushed me,” Natalya commented on that defeat.

She was no longer able to reach the decisive matches at the majors. She excelled in four mid-level WTA tournaments and lost 11 more times in the finals. It was always easier for her to play in pairs: her partners helped her to believe in herself and not lose concentration, which often happened during singles games. In singles, she was sometimes more dangerous when she was losing: “I have a feeling that I play better when I lose. For some reason, when the score is tied, I act too carefully and accurately. This style doesn’t suit my tennis.”

Zvereva was especially embarrassed when Graf was on the opposite side of the court. The German became her main rival throughout her career and won 20 out of 21 matches against her: “My coach said that when I played with her, I was dragging an elephant on my shoulders. At some point I managed to reset it, but not all of it, but about half. But, you know, even half an elephant is hard.” The coach Natalia was talking about was Juan Nunez: “Since 1988, I fell in love with Natasha’s game. Then I was working with Chris Evert and they met in Boston. I told Chris we needed to go to the net. She managed a wonderful shot, but Natasha from the corner of the court was able to deliver an incredible dribbling shot from the left. She always had amazing hands. Any coach would like to work with such a tennis player.” To her 80 doubles and four singles trophies, she added two more in mixed doubles - paired with Jim Pugh, Zvereva won the Australian Open - 90 and 95.

Now Natalya lives in Berlin and is raising a daughter, who was born in December 2009. She rarely gives interviews and appears even less often on the pages of newspapers or television screens. In her free time, Zvereva herself likes to re-read Dostoevsky, as well as watch “The X-Files,” “The Shawshank Redemption” and “Pulp Fiction.” People who know her personally say that Natalya has a difficult, but very fighting character, which helped her become a big champion. Since childhood, thanks to her father Marat, who also played tennis, she began to play this sport. Towards the end of her career, Natalya admitted that she had no idea what she could have become if she had not chosen the profession of an athlete.

At the end of her career, she did not leave tennis and tried herself as a Fed Cup captain and coach of the rising star of Belarus Anna Orlik. Just a few days ago, one of Zvereva’s achievements was repeated not by a rising star, but by a real star - Victoria Azarenka. She became the fifth racket in the world, the same rating at the peak of her career that today’s hero of the day had. Last year, Natalia returned to the court with Gigi Fernandez, playing in the veteran Roland Garros. Let's hope that we will see one of the best duos in the history of tennis again in a couple of months in the capital of France.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Natasha Zvereva was the main tennis star of the USSR, then the CIS. She won two dozen Grand Slam doubles tournaments, played in the Roland Garros singles final and won bronze at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, ​​but after retiring from the public sphere. She doesn’t give interviews or talk about her life, but she made an exception.

Brotherhood of the end. How a collapsing empire won

25 years ago, a vague CIS team without a flag or tribe went to the Olympics in Barcelona. It was the end of the empire, and our special project is about it.

“Morozova said: “You’re playing with Meskhi.” It must be so"

When did you learn that in Barcelona you would play in doubles not with Larisa Savchenko-Neyland, but with Leila Meskhi?
- Shortly before leaving directly for the Olympics. We didn't even have time to play at least a couple of tournaments to get a feel for each other's style.

- Aren't you surprised by this?
- There was no time to be surprised. Olga Vasilievna Morozova simply confronted the fact that the Zverev/Meskhi pair is competing at the Olympics. There was no choice, everything happened very quickly, I had to play from the sheet. It must be so. Larisa chose to speak out for newly independent Latvia.

- Did you prepare in any way specifically for Barcelona?
- No, there was no such opportunity due to the schedule. Of course, it would be optimal to approach Barcelona fresh and rested.

- What thoughts did you have when you went to the Olympics? Have you thought about medals?
- I am a person who lives only for today, so I didn’t make any plans. I prefer not to dream, but now to get from life what it gives. It's been like this since childhood, and nothing has changed.

They say to me: “You once played tennis at the highest level.” Yes, I did. But it was as if she had died and been reincarnated into a completely different person.

- But you played very well.
- Since we won bronze, we can say so. After all, this is my only Olympic award, although I played in four Olympics.

- And which one do you remember most?
- Of course, the first one is in Seoul. It was very bright and cool. Everything was new for me then, I experienced very strong emotions. At the age of 17, I found myself in a completely new country, where everything was beautiful and unusual. The Olympic village left unforgettable impressions.

- Was it worse in Barcelona?
- Much! Not so comfortable, not so cozy, not so tasty. And in Barcelona, ​​if I’m not confusing anything, there was a McDonald’s - this has bothered me all my life, but especially then. There was a feeling that this was not the good old Olympics, but something else. In general, in Seoul everything was more compact.

- How did you feel when you received the award?
- I was very worried that our team competed for the last time. I'm not talking about tennis, but in general. It was very bitter at that moment and is still bitter. It seems that you are not standing on the pedestal alone, with a partner, but the impression was as if each one was on its own. There they also declared us athletes of some incomprehensible artificially created country.

“I took the collapse of the country very hard. Everything is still shrinking inside.”

- After the end of the Olympics in Barcelona, ​​was there any desire to pair up with Savchenko-Neyland again?
- No. Somehow it suddenly cut off and that’s it. I think she felt the same way. But this has nothing to do with the collapse of the country, it’s just a coincidence of circumstances and some kind of mood in which we parted. After that, Larisa and I did not communicate.

- What about Leila after her career?
- We crossed paths a couple of times. She recalled the 1992 Games with great enthusiasm.

You became one of the first in Soviet sports to express disagreement with the fact that the USSR State Sports Committee takes away almost all the prize money earned by athletes. Have you always had such a rebellious spirit?
- Probably, at that time I had the right to say so. But now I will not criticize the Soviet system. Simply because part of my soul still lives in the USSR. I suffered a lot and had a hard time with the collapse of the country, not to mention Soviet sports. Nostalgia is very strong. Sometimes I remember that time - and everything inside shrinks.

You once said that the Olympics mean much more to you than any of the Grand Slam tournaments. Do you still hold this opinion?
- Undoubtedly. You see, I was a person of Soviet sports, and when I got to the Olympics, I played for my country. It's a completely different feeling than in other tournaments where you play for yourself. In terms of responsibility, in terms of emotional level, nothing compares to the Olympic Games.

- When the USSR finally collapsed, did you have a choice of which country to play for?
- I was not invited to Russia. But then in Russia, even without me, there was a very high level of tennis and quite a lot of strong players. I remember a couple of moments when I was invited to live, as it is fashionable to say, in foreign countries. But I wouldn’t go anywhere, since the USSR and Belarus, as a former part of a great country, are mine, my soul.

“I never tried to show another myself. Only the one that really exists"

From a certain stage in your career you began to play without a coach. How did you perceive the coaching instructions in the national team?
- Yes, in the national team the coaches were nearby. But I always had a filter in my head. It doesn’t matter how much authority a person has, what matters is how right the things he says are. So, if such things came from the coaches, I always listened, and if not, I simply ignored such information.

- Which of all the victories in your career was most memorable?
- I cannot answer this question, even if I try very hard. It was like in a past life that didn’t concern me. Everything merged into one stream. And not because there were many of them, but because it is very far from me and does not matter now.

I perfectly understand those who try to stay in sports for as long as possible. I didn't have to do that, thank God.

- You were the best doubles tennis player of the generation. Can we say that you pushed your partners to win?
- Perhaps in most cases this was the case and I became the “muse” in the team. But if we take the Zverev/Gigi Fernandez pair, who won a lot of tournaments, then here she was the leader. In terms of temperament and character, there was no way I could surpass her. And how we combined in terms of style and tactics on the court - it was a difficult mixed doubles game. It all depended on the person I was playing with.

Natalya Zvereva. 20 Grand Slam trophies

On April 16, the famous Soviet tennis player Natalya Zvereva turns 40 years old. She won 84 trophies during her career and is considered one of the best doubles players of all time.

- At some point in your career, you seemed to give up being single and focused on being a couple. Is this really true?
- No, this did not happen and could not happen. Without false modesty, I had a natural talent - for tennis. When the USSR collapsed with its compulsory sports camps, which caused terrible boredom, I began to belong to myself and was completely liberated. I didn’t have to train when I didn’t want to, I didn’t have to run some kind of cross-country race, for example, and I never stressed myself as much as I did in Soviet times. The routine really stressed me out. And then I spread my wings and soared. But I never abandoned anything. It just worked better in pairs, so it seemed to many that I was lukewarm about singles matches. But that was not the case.

“I played, but it was as if I had died. And then they were reincarnated"

- Is your character in sports and in life the same?
- Yes, I never tried to show some other me. Only the one that really is. I'm too specific a person. Tennis and sports in general are a thing of the past for me. I only contact a couple of people once every three years or even less. They say to me: “You once played tennis at the highest level.” Yes, she really did. But it was as if I died after finishing my sports career and was reincarnated into a completely different person.

- Were you afraid to end your career? Many athletes try to prolong it, fearing life outside of sports.
- Every person has the right to do what he wants. He wants to play for another five years - why not? Sport is a substance that is difficult to replace with something else. What else could be as full of impressions and emotions as big sport? I have many friends who were completely at a loss when they ended their active careers: where to go, what to do? Some who are lucky become coaches and stay in the sport. This is all we know and can do. In general, I perfectly understand those who try to stay in sports for as long as possible. I didn't have to do that, thank God. But it's actually very difficult.

- Why don’t you give interviews?
- First of all, this is not interesting to me. Secondly, most people no longer remember me. Thirdly, I am a reserved person and even during my active career I gave interviews extremely rarely and selectively. And only if she knew the journalist well. I have never been a media person.

- But are we talking now?
- This is an exception. Once every 25 years.

“My mom told me about Serena’s pregnancy.”

- Do you know anything about modern tennis?
- I don’t know anything specifically. But I have a string that still connects me with tennis. That's my mom. She tells me absolutely all the news, all the results worthy of attention. If she calls me and says that I need to turn on the TV and watch the match, after some clarification and hesitation, I can do it.

- Do you know about Serena Williams’ pregnancy and Maria Sharapova’s recent disqualification?
- My mother told me about Serena - she really respects this athlete, her style of play, and then I became interested and found the details on the Internet. And there was news about Sharapova from every corner; they couldn’t get past me.

- Did they try to return you to tennis for administrative or coaching work?
- There were several attempts, but then they left me behind. I can’t imagine myself in the role of an official - it would simply kill me. I am a vulnerable, pure, creative person. If this is the case, I can be a coach. But I’m only ready to work with children.

“I’m glad my daughter doesn’t like sports”

- Could you train your own daughter?
- No. Mia is even more creative than me. I don’t want to take away her childhood and ruin her as a person. Sport is not creativity, especially at the beginning of a career. This is a scary and difficult routine. Yes, she already said herself that she doesn’t want to play tennis, and she doesn’t like sports at all. For general development, I can teach her to hold a racket in her hands, but nothing more.

- Are you glad that she won’t follow in your footsteps?
- Very! I give her almost complete freedom; she is 95 percent an independent person. I entered the second grade in a regular school and attends clubs. She does what she likes.

I don’t want to take my daughter’s childhood away and ruin her as a person. For general development, I can teach her to hold a racket in her hands, but nothing more.

- For some time there were rumors that you had moved to live in Germany.
- It was a long time ago and in another life. I live a full life in Minsk and enjoy it. The buzz continues.

The award was presented to representatives of the BTF at the 40th annual general meeting of Tennis Europe, the European Tennis Federation. The laureates, including Belarusian Natalya Zvereva, were nominated by the organization's member states in recognition of their outstanding contribution to sport and its development.

Alexander Shakutin emphasized the importance of Natalia Zvereva’s achievements during her playing career, because she was the first Belarusian tennis player to reach the tennis Olympus. He also noted the merits of Natalya’s coach and father, Marat Nikolaevich Zverev, who, unfortunately, recently left us, in raising the athlete.

Natalia Zvereva- Honored Master of Sports of the USSR (1991). Winner of the largest number of titles (20) at Grand Slam tournaments (in all categories) among tennis players from the ex-USSR. She occupied the first line in the women's doubles ranking for a total of 124 weeks, first rising to it on October 7, 1991 at the age of 20. She played in Grand Slam finals 36 times in singles, doubles and mixed doubles. Participant in 4 Olympics - 1988, 1992, 1996 and 2000. Bronze medalist at the 1992 Summer Olympics in doubles (with Leila Meskhi). In 2010, she was the first and only representative of a post-Soviet country to be included in the lists of the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

At the end of the ceremony, Natalya informally talked with the management and employees of the BTF about the state of affairs in Belarusian tennis.

— It’s always nice to receive awards, - Natalya Zvereva admitted to the press service of the ROO "BTF". - In addition, it was interesting to visit the federation office on an official visit. It's nice that I had the opportunity to talk about tennis, which I have little to do with now. Nevertheless, my soul still hurts for this sport. I was glad to hear that we have a galaxy of players who will carry the banner of our native tennis.

— Tennis fans are interested in what you are doing now.

— Participated in the European Beach Tennis Championships, the tennis legends tournament at Roland Garros. I play tennis from time to time. But now it’s like a hobby. My main activity now is to enjoy life.

Natalya Zvereva donated her award to the museum of the tennis federation for storage.

90 titles, 20 majors, Olympic bronze and almost eight million dollars in bonuses. But what do we remember about Natasha Zvereva besides numbers?

Among Soviet tennis players, Zvereva always stood out. If only because she chose her own name. She became what she became - the fifth racket of the world in singles and the greatest doubles player - like "Natasha". Natasha won titles, Natasha entered the international tennis hall of fame and Wikipedia.

Zvereva always chose everything herself. She never taught anyone about life. And in return I was not going to listen to the lessons of others.

ZVEREVA AND THE SYSTEM
This was in April 1989. The finals of the FamilyCupCircle tournament were just played in Hilton Head Island (now moved to Charleston). In the decisive match, German Steffi Graf beat Natasha Zvereva from the USSR without any problems. But all attention at the final press conference was focused on the Minsk resident. When asked by journalists what part of the bonus the athlete would keep for herself, she famously replied: “None. The Federation will simply pay my expenses at the tournament, and I want my money. The check that they just handed me is just a piece of paper.”

She was only 18 years old, and the effect was great. But Zvereva was not afraid to be spectacular. She wasn't afraid of anything at all. But her fearlessness in fighting anything did not depend on age or experience. It was innate.

At that time, the fifth racket of the world, having eliminated last year's winner Navratilova on the way to the final, she was part of the elite of world tennis. In the 1988 season, she earned $361,354. Of which, in fact, I only received a weekly stipend of $1,000 for living, training, and flights.

Zvereva knew how to issue ultimatums even then. She decided: either everything is fair, or I’m done with tennis, I’m going back to school.

And they were scared of her! “The system of financial incentives for highly qualified Soviet athletes competing abroad is currently quite imperfect,”- Western newspapers quoted Yuri Portnov, a representative of the mysterious Goskomsport.

In 1987, Los Angeles Times sports columnist Lisa Dillman wrote in an article with a long title: "They put the USSR back on the tennis map: Chesnokov and Zvereva are similar to other young tennis players, but still different" I tried to take a close look at the rising stars of Soviet tennis. What she described was very different from what they were used to showing at that time on black and white televisions.

16-year-old Zvereva wore a denim jacket with a Madonna pin and a T-shirt with a print of A-ha lead singer Morten Harket. When asked by a journalist about the biggest disappointment in Zverev’s career, she answered without hesitation: “Due to reaching the final of a junior tournament in London, I was unable to go to the Genesis concert.”

Brian Friedman from the same Los Angeles Times wrote that in response to the question “what symbolizes success for you?”, 18-year-old Zvereva calmly answered: a red Mercedes.

No, she was never a downtrodden pioneer. Even then she was a star. And not potential. She has already won both the junior US Open and the junior Wimbledon...

Tennis was never a truly popular sport in the USSR. It was not so much the aristocratic image of the game that bothered me, but the lack of appearance at the Olympics. He attended the Games until 1924 inclusive. Then they managed without it for 44 years. In 1968, in Mexico City, it appeared again - in demonstrative status. And disappeared again until Los Angeles 1984.

Nevertheless, there were top tennis players in the USSR. In 1973, Alexander Metreveli played in the Wimbledon final (being fourth seeded, he lost to Czechoslovakian Jan Kodes). In 1974, Olga Morozova played the finals of Roland Garros and Wimbledon - both times against Chris Evert, both times unsuccessfully.

The prospect of tennis entering the Olympic program coincided with the emergence of a whole galaxy of young talents that blossomed in the USSR. The question of returning to the professional tour has become acute for the State Sports Committee. As a result, in 1985, the Soviet Tennis Federation entered into a contract with the ProServ agency group - one of the first of its kind. It was headed by Donald Dell, a former professional tennis player and captain of the US Davis Cup team, who had rare experience of playing in the Soviet Union.

Dell immediately undertook to represent the interests of about fifty Soviet tennis players and agreed with Nike on a sponsorship agreement. Athletes from the USSR received full equipment contracts for the first time. "Wearing Nike in the Union? Well, how can I say. It's hippy!"- Zvereva admitted to foreign journalists.

She also admitted this: “The Olympics are more important to me than Wimbledon and the US Open. I don’t even know why. Probably because in other sports the Games are the main competition in the USSR.”

That's what she thought then, in 1987.

ZVEREVA AND "COUPLE"
Rewatching the 1988 Roland Garros women's final won't take you long. It was the shortest final in the history of the majors - only 34 minutes. Steffi Graf incinerated the 17-year-old talent from the USSR 6-0, 6-0. Commentators Tony Trabert and Fred Stolle sincerely sympathized with the Soviet tennis player: stopping Steffi was unrealistic.

Steffi Graf and Natasha Zvereva: women's final at Roland Garros 1988

The Count was a surprisingly awkward opponent for Zvereva. Natasha defeated the great German only on her 19th attempt. That victory at Wimbledon 1998 remained the only one - the confrontation ended with a score of 20:1 in favor of Steffi. But the most painful was still the first defeat.

“I think she was traumatized by the French Open singles final against Steffi Graf, where she broke through before she was ready for it. She lost, as you remember, without a fight, and this may have broken her,”- this is what Anna Dmitrieva will later say in an interview with Pressball.

Then something will really happen in Zvereva’s career. But perhaps not a break, but a tilt. The main thing for Natasha will begin to become not “single”, but “couple”. She has returned to the single top ten only once since 1988. Otherwise it will be a gradual downward movement.

She would win four singles tournaments - two in 1990 (Brisbane and Sydney), one in 1994 (Chicago) and another in 1999 (Eastbourne), although she would reach the final a whopping 19 times. But he will firmly decide for himself: fun is only in doubles.

“I don’t know why, I just feel that the pair is mine. And has always been mine. It just comes very easily to me. More mistakes are forgiven there, my serve means less, you only need to cover half the court,” she told Joël Drucker of Tennis Magazine in 1998.

Natasha is already 27, and she clearly caught her second wind in solitary. You won't recognize her at Wimbledon. In the first round she eliminates Australian Rachel McQuillen (7-5, 6-4). In the second - the strong Japanese Nana Miyagi. And this is already a takeaway - 6-1, 6-3. In the third round, the Count is waiting for her.

This was one of the best matches in Natasha's career. The usually not always stable serve went almost uninterruptedly (78%), the Belarusian played Steffi a lot under the backhand, which the German had worse, confidently walked towards the net, boldly shortened... Graf (4th seeded) was finally outplayed, and in two sets - 6-4, 7-5. The fourth round against Dutchwoman Miriam Oremans was a matter of technique (6-4, 6-2).

Monica Seles was waiting for Zvereva in the quarterfinals. She also couldn’t even bring things to the third game: Natasha’s brilliant game was a revelation for the American - 7-6, 6-2 and the semi-final!

The only player who was not afraid of Zvereva was the 16th seeded “namesake” Natalie Tozia. Moreover, even there the Belarusian was close to victory: 6-1 in the first set and a tiebreaker in the second. It became a turning point: the Frenchwoman won 7-1. Natasha was not enough for the third set - 3-6.

In the second semi-final, Novotna, who would later win the final, beat Hingis. The trophy seemed close. But I can’t say that Natasha was very worried about the misfire. "I want to be in the top 10, but at the bottom of the ten,- as if not answering the question, but thinking out loud, pronouncing the words more and more slowly, she told Drukker in that interview. - It would be great to be somewhere between number 8-10. 7th also nothing. I proceed from where I can be in the ranking only on pure natural data. I'm generally very lazy. I'm not going to work my ass off."

"Her singles goals remain modest, if not unclear,"- Drucker summarizes, commenting on the absolutely revolutionary approach of the Belarusian to such a prestigious single.

However, the journalist recognized an important fact: it was the couple that brought her the lion’s share of bonuses - 6.6 million dollars out of a total of 7.6.

Larisa Savchenko and Natalya Zvereva on the cover of Ogonyok: they just won Wimbledon doubles for the first time in history

Natasha Zvereva and Gigi Fernandez: one of 20 doubles victories in “slams”

ZVEREVA AND FATHER
Her first coach was her father, Marat Nikolaevich. He was also the last. According to the same Tennis Magazine, she made the decision to train on her own in 1990. The reasons remained unknown, but after that father and daughter only became further apart. "Yes, it was painful for both of us. But his life is constant tennis, tennis, tennis. That's not for me."- Zvereva admitted.

Incredibly for an athlete with such high performance, a new personal coach never appeared. She continued to work on her own. And win, win, win a couple.

The same Olga Morozova, who worked with Zvereva in the Union team, recalled: “Zvereva’s talent can be easily equated to that of John McEnroe or Martina Hingis. She could do anything with the ball.”

At the same time, the Western press from time to time expressed bewilderment over the fact that the tall (172 centimeters) athlete completely lacked “crowns” and power. “I would like more power. I can’t win a rally with the first or second blow. I need to confuse the opponent, look for counterpunching. But sometimes it’s very difficult,”- Natasha explained. And she admitted that she simply did not have enough strength or, most importantly, patience for a long three-set match.

At a certain point, the match simply ceased to interest her. Wasn’t that what decided the matter in that semi-final with Tozia?

"She just didn't want to work as hard as she did in her teenage years."- Morozova throws up his hands.

Zvereva did not think twice about sports citizenship after the collapse of the Union, standing under the Belarusian flag. After the rise of Olga Barabanshchikova's star, Belarus received a strong team in the Fed Cup. “I think that whether I want or don’t want to play for the Belarusian national team, I must do it. “Must” implies both duty and pleasure. I will play for my country until they kick me out,”- this is how Zvereva answered at a press conference after a victorious match against the Venezuelans in 1998.

While on the national team she had to meet her father again. Quote from the PB report from that meeting: “During the match, Zvereva did not use the advice and support of her father and the captain of the national team, Marat Nikolaevich Zverev. During breaks, both of them sat, looking ahead, as if separated by a stone wall. Equanimity did not leave the captain even when his ward and daughter was nervous, throwing her racket more than once Natasha probably needs psychological support, but the paradox is that she is not used to using it..."

And so it was. She raged on the landing, but when she sat down on the bench next to her father, both fell into silence. At that time, Marat Nikolaevich was already well over sixty.

“It was striking that you and the team captain did not communicate during the match,”- they asked her at a press conference. “My father and I have complete mutual understanding. We just agreed on this before the games. I think I don’t need a coach at such a tournament,”- came the answer.

Natasha is a late child. My father died in 2014. “In the last years of his life, my husband was ill and there was little interest in him. He suffered a heart attack, but did not take any medicine. He said: I’ll die like that. I could move, but there were problems with speech and memory. Marat had 24 masters of sports among his students. If he I took on someone, acted according to the principle: I won’t tear myself away from a person until I achieve my goal. My daughter, of course, stands apart...”- recalled the widow Nina Zvereva at the opening of the Minsk 25-thousander named after the coach last year. Natasha presented awards to the participants in the finals.

We are unlikely to know what actually happened between them.

ZVEREVA AND THE PRESENT
What is happening to Natasha now? We are once again putting together the puzzle of a great tennis player from disparate narratives.

In 2010, Zvereva attended the presentation of Olga Barabanshchikova’s album in Minsk. Moreover, Komsomolskaya Pravda correspondents were quite surprised. “We were looking in the crowd of guests for a shocking lady with some bright hairstyle a la the singer Pink and were even ready to see Natalya Zvereva driving into the club in a bandana while driving a Harley.”(Zvereva once told journalists that she was interested in motorcycles, heavy music, and when asked “a few words about herself” she answered: “provocation, provocation, provocation”).
“Well, let’s say it’s me,” smiled not a daredevil, but a sort of typical Berlin “gredchen” in a green dress, a black jacket, with a modest black ponytail instead of a bandana.
- Natalia?! - we were perplexed.
You probably wouldn’t have found a more modest guest that evening even if you had walked through all the nightclubs in the city... When the presentation came to an end, Zvereva relaxed a little and even danced. Here we finally seized the moment and approached Natalya with a voice recorder:
- Natalya, we understand that you do not like to communicate with the press...
- Why don’t I love you? We can talk to you about Olga. I won't talk about myself.
- And why?
- I think I’m not the person people will read about.
- Well, really... Natasha, why are you standing modestly in the corner?
“I’m not standing in the corner, but where it’s convenient for me to watch what’s happening (seeing our photographer, Zvereva jokingly showed him her fist). - I visit Minsk twice a year, every time I come, I notice some positive changes. I have many friends here. This time I came for a week, especially for the presentation, to support Olya."

Olga Barabanshchikova and Natasha Zvereva in beach tennis

“I also don’t have a clear idea of ​​how Natasha lives and what worries her. I can’t say that Zvereva declared a boycott on me or any of my colleagues. Although, when she comes to Moscow, she declares that she doesn’t speak Russian . Normal journalists took a step forward - and the reaction was exactly that. It makes me smile and even laugh. In life I would not dare to approach her, because she never says hello. I don’t want to discuss Natasha’s behavior. : apparently something happened to her psyche. She is certainly a very talented, bright player. Perhaps not fully developed, the number of tournaments she won in doubles competitions certainly makes a strong impression."- this is again from Anna Dmitrieva.

"PB" in the person of Boris Rafailovich Tasman received an exclusive from Natasha in 1997. And it was one big suffering. Requests for an interview were made to the then tennis big boss Sergei Teterin. And he did everything he could. As a result of lengthy negotiations, citing headaches and busyness, the conversation took place. Zvereva warned: not a single question is off topic. Moreover, the theme was not just “tennis”, but “Fed Cup”. The result is a column of text: “In the Belarusian national team, with whom do you find a common language faster?” “With everyone” “Have you known them for a long time and well, or does their extensive tennis experience help?” “I know them quite poorly. But there are norms of civil relations that I try to observe...”

It so happened that we know Zvereva mainly in the retelling of Western journalists. Which is still better than nothing.

“After finishing her playing career, Zvereva was the captain of the Belarusian national team at the Fed Cup. Now she coaches 19-year-old Belarusian Anna Orlik, who is predicted to have a great future. In 2009, Natalya gave birth to a daughter, now lives and raises her in Berlin. Last summer she took part in the ITF tournament in beach tennis in Moscow, where, together with Olga Barabanshchikova, she managed to reach the final. In this game, which appeared in 1978 in Italy, they play on a volleyball court with a deflated ball and only hit with a volley. Zvereva does not like to give interviews and appear at social events. parties. In his free time, he reads Dostoevsky, watches films and listens to Led Zepelling."- a short story about Zvereva from the Ukrainian sport.segodnya.ua in 2012.

In 2014, Natasha was awarded the Tennis Europe Awards, which was presented to the tennis player at the office of the Belarusian Tennis Federation. “It’s always nice to receive awards. In addition, it was interesting to visit the federation office on an official visit. It’s nice that I had the opportunity to talk about tennis, which I have little to do with now. However, my soul still hurts for the sport “I was glad to hear that we have a galaxy of players who will carry the banner of our native tennis,”- said the legend.

Head of the Belarusian Tennis Federation Alexander Shakutin and Natasha Zvereva

“Provocation, provocation, provocation” - even if she didn’t say it, she probably really thinks so. She always did only what she wanted. Everyone noted this. Some called it strength. Someone - strangeness.

The middle finger shown to the audience at Wimbledon 2000 after Kournikova and she lost in the game with the Williams sisters - is it emotions or is it still the same “provocation” multiplied by three? "An investigation by referee Alan Mills showed that the gesture was directed at the spectators of the first court, and not at the sisters. Otherwise, the fine could have increased from $1,000 to $10,000."- the media groaned.

Yes, she was always special. The Special One of the tennis world. And not just in appearance (anyone can wear wristbands with a marijuana leaf, like Zverev did in his time).

"Natasha is a complex person. One of a kind,"- this is the first female partner Larisa Savchenko-Neyland.

"I have never met anyone like Natasha. She is the best partner for a couple. She is supportive, funny, a true friend, smart. However, sometimes I would like to understand her better. She is very independent. She could go anywhere and feel great all alone" ,- this is Lindsay Davenport.

Surprisingly, Gigi Fernandez, with whom Zvereva made the most fantastic doubles duet, doesn’t like to talk about it too much. Just like Natasha does not talk about that time. "We got along well. There was chemistry. Now Gigi is enjoying life outside of tennis,"- tennis-buzz.com quotes Zvereva.

Someone is sure that both of them did not fully open up in singles and sublimated what had not come true into doubles. But this can be argued. It is possible that it was simply a perfect coincidence of two destinies in time and space.

Her close friend, Julie Anthony, who played on the tour herself, speaks for Gigi: "I think Natasha is happier than Seles or Graf because her mood is not dependent on tennis results. She wakes up asking 'What is today?' rather than 'How could it have turned out yesterday?'