London (AP) – It was just like old times for former Wimbledon champions Martina Navratilova and Goran Ivanisevic.

Nine-time champ Navratilova returned to the All England Club for her first singles match in 10 years Monday – and looked as if she’d never been away. Serving and volleying in classic grass-court style, the 47-year-old American beat Colombia’s Catalina Castano 6-0, 6-1 in 46 minutes in a rain-interrupted early match on the opening day of the 118th edition of the Grand Slam tournament.

“It’s great to be out there, great to have that opportunity,” said Navratilova, the oldest woman to win a singles match at Wimbledon in 82 years. “When people say, ‘Why are you doing it?’ I guess the answer is, because I still can, bottom line.” A lesbian, Navratilova is one of the nation’s only openly gay athletes to come out at the height of a career.

Navratilova is the oldest woman to win a singles match at Wimbledon since Britain’s Madeline O’Neill reached the third round in 1992 at the age of 54.

Navratilova’s victory was a big turnaround from her singles appearance last month at the French Open, where she lost in straight sets in the first round to Gisela Dulko of Argentina. Dulko beat Jelena Dokic 6-3, 6-3 on Monday to set up a rematch with Navratilova in the second round.

Turning to critics who thought she couldn’t be competitive again, Navratilova said, “You guys didn’t believe me. Now do you believe me?”

She also had pointed words for those who questioned whether she deserves to be granted wild cards at the expense of younger players.

“Are they still saying it?” she said. “I don’t think so.”

Navratilova was back in her element on her favorite grass surface at the club where she made her debut 31 years ago. Winner of six straight titles from 1982-87, she hadn’t played singles at Wimbledon since losing in the 1994 final to Conchita Martinez.

After receiving a warm ovation from the crowd on Court 2, known as the “graveyard of champions,” Navratilova took charge immediately. She played a style rarely seen in tennis these days: She served and volleyed from the first point, she chipped and charged on the returns, she hit for angles rather than power.

Castano, ranked No. 102 and playing only her second match at the All England Club, looked tight facing a Wimbledon legend and put up little resistance until late in the match.

“It’s almost like playing my Mom,” said Castano, whose mother is 50.

Navratilova was up 5-0 after just 16 minutes when the match was stopped for 40 minutes by rain. There were several other rain delays during the afternoon, with more bad weather forecast this week.

After the delay, Navratilova picked up where she left off, breaking for the first set and racing to a 5-0 lead in the second. Castano finally picked up her game, breaking for 5-1 and forcing a break point in the next game. It took Navratilova five match points before she finally closed out the contest.