Martina Navratilova rolled back the years with an almost effortless 6-0, 6-1 victory over Colombian Catalina Castano at Wimbledon on Monday.
Playing her first Wimbledon singles match for a decade, the 47-year-old Navratilova moved into the second round of the grasscourt Grand Slam she won nine times.
"So you think I can make a living doing this?" quipped Navratilova, who first played at Wimbledon in 1973.
Castano, who at 24 is almost half her illustrious opponent's age, lasted just 46 minutes in a one-sided match that revealed that Navratilova still has an exquisite serve-and-volley game.
Navratilova, whose name means "Comeback" in her native Czech, was clearly overjoyed afterwards, saluting the crowd and stopping to sign autographs for fans who lined courtside 10 deep.
"It's not about age," Navratilova told reporters. "Do what you love and love what you do."
She was drummed out of the French Open in the first round on her return to Grand Slam singles action last month, but could have a chance for revenge in the second round here if her nemesis at Roland Garros, Gisela Dulko, beats Jelena Dokic later on Monday.
"If ever I've said it's one match at a time, this was it," Navratilova said.
When beaten by Conchita Martinez in the 1994 singles final, Navratilova plucked a blade of grass from her beloved Centre Court as a lasting memento, but her Wimbledon days were far from over.
Last year the naturalized American landed her 20th Wimbledon title when she won the mixed doubles with Indian Leander Paes and they could easily repeat the trick again this year.
Navratilova said she wanted to play singles so she could sharpen her skills on the doubles court and her cross-court agility against Castano was a joy to behold.
After ensuring her place in the second round, she punched the air with delight and the crowd gave her a rapturous reception. She lapped up every second of it.
