Chris Evert vs Pam Shriver | US Open 1978 Final highlights

Welcome to a perfect day for tennis. You're watching Chris Evert and Pam Shriver, loosening up, getting ready for the U.S. Open Championship. Chris Evert on the left, Shriver on the right. Get some feel. She's the one that's going to improve as she gets loosened up and really gets the groove. So I would think that Pam would be better off brushing her just as quickly as possible. I agree. I thought there was a classic Chris Evert point. She likes to get her opponent pinned into the backhand corner. They'll eventually get tempted up to come into the net, usually at Chris's request. And then she can lob or pass him. Chris has played solidly right through the tournament, but I don't think she's ever felt totally happy with her game on this fast surface. I think everybody's probably struggled a little bit. But not quite tall enough for that. This is double break point for Chris Evert. Congratulations to Billie Jean King, who has just joined us. Thank you. Mixed doubles champion, as well as a member of the women's doubles championship team of yesterday with Martina earlier today. How much of the airplanes bother you? It's not so much the airplanes as much as the wind that keeps changing directions all the time. And the court slants quite a bit, so it's difficult sometimes to know whether the ball's going to land in or not. You're running downhill or uphill depending upon where you hit the ball to. Pam had said yesterday that she would not feel any pressure, that she didn't think she'd be nervous. You must be joking. She said that. I'm still nervous at 34. Don Candy, her coach, was saying, I've been talking to him all through the tournament and he's had such a nice big smile on his face. He said that she felt that against Martina she played just as well as Martina at times and so she reckoned that Chris and Martina were much the same class of play and so she really hoped that she could produce that same stuff today. But I think she is very much afraid of Chris's reputation and her game. I think you have to be. Just a little tight, 6 foot tall, weighs about 140. I asked her before the match because everyone says she's 5 foot 11. That was probably 2 years ago when she was only 14. I have to believe she's going to grow some more. That last serve wide is probably the serve she should serve at least 60 to 75 percent of the time to get Chris off the court so her first volley doesn't have to be that good to have a chance to win the point. The games are now 3-2. Running it side to side and up and back. Chris feels that if she doesn't get her first serve in that Pam is going to follow that second serve to net. 4-2, Evert. That's a good serve. Chris is going to need a step lighter to get to that one. Bounces so high because Pam Shriver is so tall. Shriver. Evert on the right, Shriver on the left. Chris Evert is showing Pam Shriver its new balls that change every 7 or 9 games. Pam Shriver is going to have to come up with a good game to break back. She's dropped her serve on her second service game and won all. If Chris can hold on to her serve, that was just what she needed, an early break. Chris just missed that passing shot. I think the new balls might just help Pam a little bit. They have a tendency to get extremely light on the surface. You don't have too much control over them. It's the largest crowd ever to watch a tournament match other than Davis Cup. This is a long game. I think probably whoever wins this game is going to have a big advantage throughout the match, psychologically. Advantage, Evert. I think Pam thought the ball was out. I think some of the crowd did too. From here, it looked as if it hit right on the line and sometimes you get a little scared with the ball off the line. Pam signaled good to Chris. Generally, the players do communicate and tell each other what they thought. Advantage, Evert. It's the shot you can sometimes come up with when you're game point done, but can you ever come up with that when you need it to win the game? Out. Advantage, Evert. There's a good first serve by Chris Evert. I think Pam had to move to her right and really reach. Would you like to know what Chris Evert's thinking right now? Yes, I would. This is not her style. She's so consistent, very rarely makes errors. She's also a human being. That's three double falls for this game. That's the strangest thing I've seen for a long time. I don't know whether the wind's moving around and she feels that she's against it and had to go for a big one there. Advantage, Evert. That's one of the few times you see Chris Evert have to run that much. Look at that determination on Chris Evert's face. She's going to fight back harder than ever. Especially if you break back after a long game. ...again and she cross-courted Chris where she had to change directions again and of course had all that court to the backhand side. That time Pam really did fool Chris by hitting behind her. This is forehand. That's what we've seen all day. It's been very effective. Chris is thinking, I've got to get this return lower, keep the ball in play, make Pam Sharver hit the ball. Last few, she's been lucky to get the racket on. That inspiration that comes at a tight point when the adrenaline's really flowing. That makes it deuce. ...not reach it. Had no momentum behind it. In fact, it had backspin so it almost bounced back towards the net. Another point, hitting the ball right at Pam Sharver and then of course a drop shot. A lot of variety in this game. 40-15. Sharver leads five games to four, first set. Came like a champion. That was just wide. Good attitude. She went for it. Great point. It's a big point for both of them. Pam taking a little extra moment there to try to make sure she's concentrating to get her first serve in. She leads six games to five. It's a nice prize for the winner. Not a bad one for the runner-up today. The women's prize money is equal to the men's of this tournament, which is tremendous. Good result. It was very close. And there's an example of that very good love of Pam Sharver's for the first time. Pam Sharver is 16 years old. She's going to McDonough Prep School just outside of Baltimore. And she's got to be there tomorrow morning. She's taking two years of school in one year so she can start playing tennis full-time. And it's double break point for Pam Sharver. Just broke serve in the first game, which is exactly what one hopes to do if you've just had a close first set. It rather spoils the effect if she loses this game. One all in the second set. Take another look at part of that point and you'll see that Chrissy getting out wide tries to go for a drop shot. I think really because she was in trouble anyway. Came back looking for a ball down the line and was outsmarted by sixteen-year-old Pam Sharver. So we come back live. It's thirty all. One all second set. Chris Everett has won the first set. Seven games to five. She looked at the linesperson. Not happy, but wants to keep her concentration. It did look a little wide, but on the other hand it had so much spin on it that it might have skid right through the line and ended up on the other side. Ely Nastasi warmed up with Chris Everett today. He flew in so he could be here to watch the match. He's the player coach for the L.A. Strings. Good smash, though the lob wasn't too deep. It was pretty high. Take another look and you'll see how Pam gets to the net. Makes some good volleys, but couldn't get it away from Chris. Now Chris comes in and picks off this volley with Pam out of position. Carefully plays it into the opening. So we come back live. It's deuce. Big serve. The first serve. Pam Sharver is her largest weapon is what really caused her upset of Martina Navratilova. I think you could take advantage of this second serve, Billy, if Chris wanted to, because she doesn't seem to have a lot of pace on it. And a lot of times it's not too deep. How do you know you weren't even born? I used to watch you play. I was a youngster. But don't you think might be a good play again to try to. Absolutely. The ball's bouncing high. Gives you time to move forward and into the ball. And you get it down into the court. It's thirty love. She forced the issue more often. Right. And when she does want to come in, she she takes the ball a little earlier. She gets it higher in the bounce. When she stand back, she sometimes lets the ball drop back down and I think takes away some of her aggressive play. Chrissy Everett has gotten even at two all. Pam is getting a lot of side spin on that serve. It's one of those serves that is so effective if you get the full spin on it. And if you don't, it flattens out and it becomes almost against you. It puts you in a terrible position if you slightly miss the spin. Good volley by it's thirty all. And it's break point forever. Pam was a little slower getting in there. She didn't get as wide as she wanted to either. And when you're going for that wide serve in the deuce court, you don't get it where you want it. Don't get it wide enough. It opens up your court. She leads three games to two. Take another look. Pam takes a short ball and here she comes. Chris didn't get that forehand cross court as far as she wanted it. Now we're back live at the first serve of fault. Fifteen forty. Pam Shriver trying to get even at three all in the second set. Wrong guess. Still break point. The approach wasn't real deep but boy under pressure Chris really made a darn good forehand. It's out. Chris knows she has to get her first serve in. Because Pam will probably try to attack if she does miss her first serve. Pam's volley is good when it's at a little distance from her. She hits it well out in front and very effectively. Onto your backhand smash which has got to be the hardest shot for anybody to hit. If you're right-handed, I think that's why Martina does well because she's being left-handed. Generally it's an overhead for her. And those kind of points have to take a little something out of Pam Shriver physically. She worked awfully hard on that point and ended up losing it. Good smash. Chris took a second look. She knows that ball is awfully close to the baseline. It's thirty all. Three all second set. Women's singles finals. The U.S. Open Championships. Jess Everett has won the first set. Seven games to five. First serve. Chris did well to get positioned to play that ball as well as she did. Of course Pam was right there at net. Four games to three in the second set. Thirty-fifteen. Seems as if it's difficult to keep the ball in from Pam Shriver's side to the other side. Good shot by Chris Everett. She'll raise her game a level. A place volley that time by Everett. I think she concentrates more or better when she's in this kind of situation. Champions always do. When you're in this kind of situation, it's four all. You know that you're going to have to raise your game a level to stay even with champions. Championship shot by a champion under pressure is now deuce. Separates the girls from the women. It's so vital whenever you forty-love up to try and win that next point. How many games does one lose when you think you've won it? Anticipated that correctly. Still to get a volley by Pam Shriver. Volley was wide. And again it is deuce. Pam wasn't timid about going after that high forehand volley either was she? She really goes for that. Tennis is a game of inches. Chris Everett. Don't you feel as if she served too many serves to the forehand? Of course Chris is guessing her right. I think she'd be smart also to serve a few straight at Chris instead of going wide all the time. Of course. Got to mix it up some. Chris Everett. She leads 5-4. Will be serving for the match. She's coming back. She's telling herself to come over the ball with her forehand. Oh it's dangerous. It's now double break point. Five percentage shots. Especially standing on the baseline. Very rarely do you see Chris Everett make that mistake. That's called a mental error as well as an execution error. Double break point for Pam Shriver and I would be very surprised if Pam doesn't come right in behind this return. Under pressure, but it's still break point. I think you're going to have to have both going for you. Keep Chris honest. No matter what happens you've got to give Pam Shriver a tremendous amount of credit. Absolutely. She gets the effort under the circumstances. You bet. And she made a good approach shot. She had some pace on it. She didn't pray it into the court. That is wide. What a fighter in Pam Shriver. And we're back to deuce. Chris Everett has been getting her first serves in these last few points. Not hitting it quite as hard, but spinning it to make sure she gets it in to keep Pam from attacking right off the bat. What a tactician in Chris Everett. Match point for the second time. Carried that forehand. Chris seems to have got a little bit careful. When she's down the game point she makes sure she doesn't miss it. But I thought she might go for one when she had match point. And again, match point for Chris Everett. This is number three. Chris has sort of looked up to the sky and took a deep breath. Wow, let's get this one. Knowing Chris Everett, she will. It's pressure time. Short approach shot. There it is. Game, set, and match. Mrs. Everett so happy for Chrissy. And rightfully so. And wherever you are, Mrs. Shriver, be equally happy for your daughter Pam. A super job. Just listen to that ovation from this full house. Chris Everett for the fourth year in a row. 78th United States Open Women's Champion.