"She is a really big guiding light": Krejcikova pays tribute to Navratilova as a tennis inspiration

Barbora Krejcikova expressed her admiration for former world No. 1 Martina Navratilova and sent a message of support for her recovery after being diagnosed with cancer.

Earlier this year, the tennis legend Navratilova announced that she had been diagnosed with cancer for the second time. In 2010, she battled breast cancer, which she overcame thanks to a good prognosis from her doctors. The Czech American former tennis player is now facing the same disease again, but this time it is a double diagnosis: breast cancer and throat cancer.

Barbora Krejcikova spoke about this after winning the doubles title at the BNP Paribas Open Indian Wells alongside her compatriot Katerina Siniakova and expressed her admiration for Navratilova and the opportunity to meet her.

"Well, I think there is a generational gap, a big gap, but then on the other hand I definitely knew who Martina was and how successful she was when I was actually playing, when I was a junior. So for me, having the opportunity to meet her and to actually became a friend is a really big thing for me,” said the 2021 French Open champion.

Furthermore, Krejcikova valued the role that the 18-time Grand Slam champion played in the development of her tennis career and wished her a speedy recovery.

"I really like her, and she also is trying to help me with the development of my tennis. So I can say that for me, yeah, she is a really big, like, guiding light right now after not having Jana here anymore,"

“Obviously the situation that is happening, it's not good, and, I mean, I wish her all the best," she said.

"I wish her, you know, to become healthy again and to be, you know, back again at the tournament, because I think she really loves it. I mean, we are so happy to have her here around and to be able to talk to her," added Krejcikova.