Martina Navratilova sends touching message after Duchess of Kent Katharine dies at age 92

September 5, 2025

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Tennis veteran Martina Navratilova reacted to the death of Katharine, Duchess of Kent at the age of 92. The Duchess passed away at Kensington Palace on the night of September 4.

Notably, the Duchess had an immense affinity towards the sport of tennis, and was often seen attending the prestigious Wimbledon Championships, handing off the trophy to the winners back in the day.

Notably, Navratilova also had a very special relationship with the Duchess of Kent on a personal note, where the latter helped the former tennis player to meet her mother during a hostile situation in Czechoslovakia in 1979. The Duchess made personal visa arrangements for Navratilova’s mother to come and watch her play at Wimbledon.

Thereby, to express her gratitude after the sudden demise of Katharine, the Duchess, Navratilova shared a post on her X handle. The 18-time Grand Slam champion thanked the Duchess for her contribution to her career and expressed her sorrow at her death. She wrote:

"I am so sad for the passing of her Royal Highness, the Duchess of Kent though I had the privilege of calling Katherine. What she did for me personally was an amazing thing. RIP and thank you so very much for all the good you have done."

In addition to this special relationship, the Duchess of Kent has also handed the Wimbledon trophy to Martina Navratilova during the latter's active years in the sport, such as in 1978.

Martina Navratilova shared her take on the favorite to win the 2025 US Open

Martina Navratilova also picked her favorite player to win the men's singles title at the US Open 2025. Notably, in the final four of the tournament, Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, and Felix Auger-Aliassime will be locking horns.

Navratilova said that she felt Alcaraz would win the Grand Slam, but Sinner's recent performances at the tournament changed her opinion. She also aligned with Sinner's prowess on hard courts in the last couple of years and said (via Sky Sports):

"I did pick Carlos before the tournament started. Although the way Sinner played yesterday was pretty scary. Although I think with his variety, he still has a chance. But I think Sinner is the slight favorite, especially the way he’s been playing on the hard courts these last two years.."

However, adding to her statement, Navratilova further remarked that Alcaraz does have the skills up her sleeve that can even outdo a hard-court specialist like Sinner.

About the author

Soumik is a journalist at Sportskeeda who covers US Olympics. Currently an Honors student of Journalism and Mass Communication, he has also worked for other firms as a tennis and football content writer.

Soumik’s favorite Olympian is Michael Phelps and he believes that the eight-time Olympic gold medal-winning swimmer has revolutionized the spectrum of Swimming. Nonetheless, the adrenaline rush that Track & Field sports offer interests him the most; and Neeraj Chopra’s historic gold-medal victory at the 2020 Tokyo Games is his favorite moment from past Olympics.

Soumik sources data and facts from credible sources like BBC and NBC for accurate and relevant reporting, and keeps up with updates on social media and news media platforms.

He feels that covering collegiate tournaments, similar to what is done in the United States can be a good way to cover the bridge the coverage gap during the Olympics off season.

When not reporting on the latest Olympics news stories, Soumik likes to play cricket and watch movies.

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