Seles played her comeback match against Naratilova

Both have endured their fair share of bad press earlier in their careers - Navratilova for being open about her homosexuality and for her outspoken views, Seles for her on-court grunting and her giggly affectations at press conferences around the world.

But both are now adored by the public - Navratilova because she played on and on despite losing her invincibility and Seles because she came back after being stabbed on court in Berlin in 1993.

There were doubts as to whether Seles would ever play again after the horrific incident in Germany but when she did return two years later, it was against Navratilova that she chose to play her first match, an exhibition event in the United States.

French highs and lows

Navratilova's relationship with the French Open has had its ups and downs.

It was the first Grand Slam she ever played in back in 1973 and she won two singles, seven doubles (including five in a row from 1984-88) and two mixed doubles titles there.

Seles has not enjoyed much success in recent years

The crowd at Roland Garros can be notoriously partisan - in the 1999 women's singles final, they turned against Martina Hingis and seemingly propelled Steffi Graf to an unlikely victory.

Whether they can do the same for Navratilova and Seles is another matter but if either player get their hands on a winner's trophy, there will not be a dry eye in the house.