Tennis - Krejcikova wins Wimbledon for the first time
The Czech tennis player Barbora Krejcikova has become the Wimbledon champion for the first time. The 28-year-old won the surprise final in London against the 28-year-old Italian Jasmine Paolini with 6:2, 2:6, 6:4. After 1 hour and 56 minutes, the 28-year-old converted her third match point in a nerve-wracking finale and celebrated her second Grand Slam title after the French Open victory in 2021.
Krejcikova will succeed her Czech compatriot Marketa Vondrousova. Among the men, Carlos Alcaraz from Spain and the seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic will face each other on Sunday in a repeat of last year's final.
Paolini loses second Grand Slam final in a row
Krejcikova can look forward to prize money of approximately 3.2 million Euro. She will move up from 25th place in the World Ranking on Monday and return to the Top Ten as the new number ten.
Paolini, the first Italian Wimbledon finalist, receives around 1.7 million Euro. A month ago, she missed her Grand Slam title debut at the French Open just like this time on the London Church Road. In Paris, she had no chance against the Polish number one in the world, Iga Swiatek. Now, Paolini determinedly fought against defeat but had to concede the victory to Krejcikova.
Krejcikova starts stronger in surprise final
This final act of the Women's Draw was not supposed to happen. The number 31 on the seeding list (Krejcikova) met the number seven (Paolini). Krejcikova brought final experience to the Centre Court at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club from her doubles successes in 2022 and 2018. She had won the doubles competition at the London Church Road. In total, she has seven Grand Slam titles in doubles and three more in mixed.
With 15,000 spectators on Centre Court, Krejcikova started two days after her shock semifinal victory against the clear favorite and former Wimbledon champion Jelena Rybakina from Kazakhstan. Krejcikova played consistently well and intimidated Paolini into the corners. With a 4:1 lead, she had two breaks and was ahead after 35 minutes with the first set win.
Paolini takes the damper out
However, those who thought it would continue like this, with Krejcikova dominating, were disappointed. Impressively, Paolini took the damper out. She left the court after losing the second set and suddenly became the better player. The second set went clearly to the Italian.
The decisive breakthrough was a long and evenly matched phase. The decision fell when Krejcikova secured the first break in the third set with the help of a double fault from Paolini.
In this Wimbledon edition with several surprises among the women, numerous title favorites had already been eliminated. Australian Open Champion Aryna Sabalenka left due to a shoulder injury just before her first match. Vondrousova, Swiatek, and US Open Champion Coco Gauff were eliminated early.
For the six German participants, including Angelique Kerber, it was already over after the first or second round.
Alcaraz and Djokovic, both tennis stars, are set to compete in the Men's Final at Wimbledon on Sunday. The match will take place in London, United Kingdom, a repeat of last year's finale. (Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom, Sunday)
Jasmine Paolini, the Italian player, had another chance to win her first Grand Slam title at Roland Garros, but she fell short once again. (Jasmine Paolini, Roland Garros)
Following her successful campaign at Wimbledon, Krejcikova will move up to the Top Ten in the World Ranking and collect an estimated 3.2 million Euro in prize money. (Barbora Krejcikova, prize money)
Paolini's recent performance at Wimbledon demonstrates her resilience despite losing the final. Despite a strong start by Krejcikova, Paolini fought back to win the second set and put pressure on her opponent. (Jasmine Paolini, resilience, Barbora Krejcikova)
The German tennis players, including Angelique Kerber, were eliminated early in the tournament, with several title favorites also being upset by unexpected players. (Germany, titie favorites, Angelique Kerber)
The victory by Krejcikova marked her second Grand Slam title, having previously won the French Open in 2021. (Barbora Krejcikova, French Open, 2021)
