Barbora Krejcikova made a triumphant return to a Grand Slam singles final on Thursday, defeating 2022 champion Elena Rybakina in a gripping match at Wimbledon. The Czech player, who had previously claimed her only major title three years ago, showcased resilience to secure a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory.
Krejcikova, the lower-seeded underdog, faced a tough start against the powerful Kazakh, but maintained her composure to pull off the comeback. She will now face Italian Jasmine Paolini, who also made headlines by reaching the final after defeating Croatian Donna Vekic in a thrilling 2-6, 6-4, 7-6(8) match.
This year’s tournament will mark the eighth consecutive time a different woman has claimed the Wimbledon title, with Krejcikova’s performance ensuring a first-time champion. By reaching the final, she joins an elite group as the seventh Czech-born woman to do so in the Open Era, following in the footsteps of legends like Martina Navratilova and Petra Kvitova.
Emotional about her journey, Krejcikova reflected on her late mentor Jana Novotna, the 1998 champion, saying, “I remember thinking about her a lot. When I step on the court, I fight for every single ball as that is what she would want me to do.”
Paolini’s victory marks a historic achievement, as she becomes the first Italian woman since Serena Williams in 2016 to reach both the French Open and Wimbledon finals in the same year. Despite having never won a grass match prior to this season, Paolini expressed her disbelief at reaching two consecutive Grand Slam finals.
“I feel maybe Saturday I’ll be so nervous, I don’t know. But I also feel relaxed,” she said.
The semi-final match was a grueling encounter lasting 2 hours and 51 minutes, the longest women’s semi-final at Wimbledon. Vekic, who battled through significant pain, shared her emotional struggle: “I had so much pain in my arm, in my leg… My tears weren’t just because I lost; I didn’t know how I could keep playing.”
Attention now turns to the men’s semi-finals on Friday, featuring defending champion Carlos Alcaraz against fifth seed Daniil Medvedev, followed by Novak Djokovic aiming for a record-extending 25th Grand Slam title against Italian Lorenzo Musetti.
