Tennis - The best day of my life
Tenderly, Barbora Krejcikova kisses the prestigious Wimbledon-Trophy. In an underdog final, the Czech tennis player became the winner of the popular grass tournament in London for the first time and celebrated her second Grand-Slam title in singles after the French Open victory 2021. With a score of 6:2, 2:6, 6:4, she decided the match against the Italian Jasmine Paolini for herself, which turned into a nail-biting finish.
"I have no words. It's just unreal. It's definitely the best day of my tennis career and also the best day of my life", said the 28-year-old. "We fought for every point. In the end, I was the lucky one."
With the first break in the third set at 4:3, also with the help of a double fault from Paolini, Krejcikova secured the advantage in the decisive set. The decision fell only when she broke through her serving game at 5:4, despite showing nerves in the face of the approaching triumph. "I just tried to stay brave", described Krejcikova, who will return to the top ten of the world rankings as number ten on Monday.
Krejcikova can hardly believe it
When the third match point of Paolini's return flew clearly out, she raised her arms. She sent a congratulatory hand to the heavens and later received the congratulations of her team on the tribune. She crowned herself as the next Czech winner and successor to compatriot Marketa Vondrousova.
No one in her homeland will believe that she actually triumphed here on this famous stage: "No one will believe that I made it to the final and no one will believe that I won Wimbledon. I can't believe it", said the Czech. She was not in good form at all. "Now I'm here and I'm the Wimbledon champion."
Thoughts of Novotna
During the award ceremony, the speech turned to her late former coach Jana Novotna, who won Wimbledon in 1998. Krejcikova had to swallow. Meeting her had changed her tennis life. "Jana was the one who told me I had the potential. I never thought I would win the same trophy as Jana."
The new Wimbledon champion can look forward to prize money of around 3.2 million Euros. Paolini, the first Italian in the Wimbledon final, received just under 1.7 million Euros. A month ago, she also missed her Grand-Slam title debut at the French Open.
Despite her disappointment, the 28-year-old Italian could still smile. "I have to remind myself that it's still a good day. Being here now is crazy. I enjoyed every day. It were wonderful two weeks."
Krejcikova with a better start in the surprise final
This final act of the Women's Draw was not supposed to be predicted. The number 31 on the seeding list (Krejcikova) met the number seven (Paolini). Krejcikova brought final experience on Centre Court at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club from her doubles successes in 2022 and 2018. In total, she has seven Grand-Slam titles in doubles and three more in mixed.
Two days after her hard-fought semifinal victory against the clear favorite and former Wimbledon winner Jelena Rybakina from Kazakhstan, Krejcikova started significantly better on Centre Court.
Krecjikova played consistently against her equally aged Italian opponent first, intimidating her into the corners. With a 4:1 lead, her current doubles partner of Laura Siegemund had two breaks ahead. She played exceptionally well and had managed to win the first set in 35 minutes.
However, those who thought the second set would continue in the same way were deceived. Paolini left the court after losing the set and suddenly became the better player. The second set went clearly to the Italians. But the match turned again, [...]
Jana Novotna's legacy lived on, as Barbora Krejcikova mentioned her during the award ceremony. Krejcikova, like Novotna, now stands as a Wimbledon champion from the Czech Republic.
While Jasmine Paolini missed her second Grand-Slam title debut at Roland Garros, she managed to reach the Wimbledon final, representing Italy for the first time in history.
Barbora Krejcikova's impressive performance in the final against Paolini marked her second Grand-Slam title victory, sparking celebrations in both the tennis world and her home country.
Krejcikova's victory over Paolini in the endgame of the Wimbledon finals marked an impressive comeback, as she had struggled with form beforehand.
The United Kingdom and Germany were represented in the two Grand-Slam events by Krejcikova and Paolini, respectively. Krejcikova's victories in both the French Open and Wimbledon have shaken up the international tennis rankings.
