“The marriage between me and myself is working out very well” – When Steffi Graf explained the symbolism behind the gold band on her ring finger

Steffi Graf once explained the symbolism behind the shiny gold band on her ring finger amid her challenging 1990 season.
The year 1990 proved to be a difficult one for Graf, both on and off the court. Although the German kicked off the year by winning her ninth Major title at the Australian Open, a subsequent skiing accident resulted in a thumb injury, which sidelined her for two months.

Her much-awaited comeback to the tour at the German Open was marred by the revelation of a paternity scandal involving her father Peter, based on model Nicole Meissner’s claim that he was the father of her child. Amid the scandal, Graf suffered a resounding straight-set loss to Monica Seles in the final in Berlin.
The situation led to relentless scrutiny and incessant questions from reporters, culminating in the German breaking down in tears during a Wimbledon press conference. The emotional toll seemed to translate to struggles on the court as well, as Graf failed to triumph at the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open.

As her 1990 season neared its conclusion, Steffi Graf was spotted wearing a gold band on her ring finger, inviting curiosity. During her campaign at the Virginia Slims of New England, the German clarified that she had bought the ring for herself and disclosed that it symbolized her marriage to herself.

Reflecting on her challenging year, she shared that the adversity had drained her of her confidence, even on the court, but expressed her determination to move past her struggles.
“I bought the ring just because I liked it. The marriage between me and myself is working out very well. So many things happened this year that I was not responsible for, but still I always felt like I was in the middle,” Steffi Graf said in an interview with The New York Times.

“Now I am not thinking that way. This year I felt like I had never felt before, not confident, not even on the court. Now I am getting on with things,” she added.
Steffi Graf: “What I have been able to feel, finally, is that even if I only won one Grand Slam this year, that is not so bad”

During the same interview, Steffi Graf opened up about her newfound positive outlook on her 1990 season, emphasizing that despite winning just one Grand Slam title, her achievements were nothing to scoff at.
“What I have been able to feel, finally, is that even if I only won one Grand Slam this year, I only lost four matches, and that is not so bad,” Steffi Graf said.

Meanwhile, the German’s coach Pavel Slozil revealed how difficult it was for Graf to recognize any positives in her difficult season due to her “perfectionist” tendencies.
“She tends to be a negative person, anyway, and a perfectionist so getting her to find anything positive about this year was difficult.
“Even winning tournaments didn’t always help because for a time she had stopped believing in herself, and this is a girl who needs to believe in herself,” Slozil said.
Steffi Graf went on to triumph at the Virginia Slims of New England, beating Gabriela Sabatini 7-6(5), 6-3 in the final.