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Evert, a tennis analyst for ESPN, had been scheduled to work as a commentator at this year's Wimbledon tournament in London, which runs from June 29 to July 12. In her statement Thursday, she said she would be stepping back from her professional commitments for the next several months \"to focus on my health.\"

\"PHOTO:
Jamie Mccarthy/Getty Images
PHOTO: Chris Evert attends "Chris & Martina: The Final Set" Premiere during the 2026 Tribeca Festival at SVA Theater on June 10, 2026 in New York City.
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\"Ovarian cancer is relentless, but I will stay optimistic and determined in continuing to fight this battle,\" she wrote. \"I am deeply grateful to my medical team, my family, friends, and everyone who has reached out with kindness and encouragement. I look forward to seeing everyone again soon.\"

Evert was first diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2022, announcing the following year that she was cancer-free.

She received a second diagnosis just under a year later and revealed she was cancer-free again in July 2024.

\"PHOTO:
Tony Duffy/Getty Images
PHOTO: Chris Evert serves during a singles match at the Wimbledon Championships, in 1978.
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Evert recently sat down with \"Good Morning America\" alongside longtime tennis rival turned friend Martina Navratilova and said their shared post-retirement cancer battles -- Navratilova was diagnosed twice, in 2010 and 2023, and is now cancer-free -- had \"brought our relationship, our friendship, to another level because of the support and the care that we had for each other.\"

Evert made her major tournament debut at just 16 years old in the 1971 U.S. Open at Forest Hills, becoming the youngest semifinalist in the tournament's history, according to the International Tennis Hall of Fame. She lost the match to eventual champion Billie Jean King.

\"PHOTO:
Pa Images Archive/PA Images via Getty Images
PHOTO: Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova hold the ladies' doubles trophy after defeating Billie Jean King and Betty Stove in the final at the Wimbledon Championships, July 5, 1976.
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Evert notched 18 Grand Slam titles over the course of her playing career. The former world No. 1 player also held that top ranking for 260 weeks, which according to the Women's Tennis Association is the fourth all-time record behind Steffi Graf (377 weeks), Navratilova (332 weeks) and Serena Williams (319 weeks).

Evert retired from professional tennis in 1989 and was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1995.

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