Gabriela Sabatini sentó las bases para que las estrellas del tenis se convirtieran en fenómenos de marca

This column paid tribute to Andre Agassi’s half-century anniversary a couple of weeks ago. Since then, Gabriela Sabatini has reached the age of fifty. During the year 1970, what did these two infants have in common? Aside from having a large head of hair, not much else, and much more marketability.

When compared to Agassi, who has since admitted to wearing a wig, Sabatini’s jet-black locks were the real deal. Agassi has already admitted to wearing a wig. According to the comments of a reporter who was completely enamored with her, “as iridescent as a raven’s wing,” they flowed as easily as her beautiful backhand. The addition of a few of shoulder padding would have allowed her to walk off the set of Dynasty without any problems.

Not only did she possess athleticism and glamour, but she also possessed that enigmatic aspect that is tantalizing to advertising. Here was a woman who had everything an advertiser could want. Additionally, it must have had an impression on the younger Roger Federer. It was in a radio interview in 2006 that he revealed Sabatini to be the object of his teenage crush.

Federer’s praise is a superb example of something that could not be more appropriate. In the same way that Federer would eventually discover a long-term enemy in Rafael Nadal, Sabatini continued to face her own adversary, Steffi Graf, in the championship match of each and every tournament that she participated in. The Germanic ice and the Latin fire were two juxtapositions that occurred over a lengthy period of time.

This head-to-head competition was described by the novelist Martin Amis as “Fraulein Forehand meets Bonita Backhand” in an essay that he wrote for Vogue in the year 1988. Moreover, he did not conceal the fact that he was a supporter of the other party. According to what Amis wrote, “Sabatini appears to be a (successful) experiment in genetico-aesthetics.” “Designed, cultivated, and cultivated to achieve the highest possible level of beauty.”

This was a place where one might make money. It was during the same summer of 1988 that it came to her in the shape of an unexpected perfume contract, which was something that no other female athlete in any sport had ever done before.

Gabriela Sabatini, the scent, would go on to have a career that was even longer and more brilliant than Gabriela Sabatini, the player. This fragrance would give rise to fourteen distinct versions and multi-million dollar earnings that are still being made today. Her representative, Patricio Apey, recalls that he had to turn back the initial royalty check because he believed that the numbers were printed incorrectly. At a certain point in time, she was earning more than Graf and Monica Seles combined.

And yet, despite the fact that the money was pouring in, Sabatini remained the same timid person she had always been: a girl who had trouble expressing herself and whose responses to news conferences rarely went beyond seven words.

When Sabatini first entered the locker room, his reserved personality was not well appreciated by the other players. Chris Evert’s gripe, “At least I say hello to people,” was a precursor to more contemporary comments about Maria Sharapova, who is another beauty queen who has achieved commercial success. A second American actress, Pam Shriver, expressed her dissatisfaction with “a couple of awfully quiet breakfasts” during that time period.

On the other hand, the passage of time has softened some of those sharp edges, on both sides. The current comparison that Shriver makes between Sabatini and the much-loved Evonne Goolagong is as follows: “A graceful player, an elegant woman, and a good sport.”