Illustration of "Wimbledon Champion's Emotional Journey: From Doubts to Victory"

“Wimbledon Champion’s Emotional Journey: From Doubts to Victory”

At the age of 18 and a decade before securing her Wimbledon victory on Saturday, Barbora Krejcikova was uncertain about continuing with professional tennis or pursuing a different path through education. Unsure of her next step, Krejcikova sought advice from her idol, Jana Novotna, the 1998 Wimbledon champion. She dropped a letter at Novotna’s home in their native Czech Republic. Novotna, who sadly passed away from cancer in 2017, advised her to stick with tennis and became a mentor for Krejcikova.

“Before she passed away,” Krejcikova said, “she told me to go and win a Slam.”

Krejcikova has now won two major titles. After an unexpected victory at the French Open three years ago, she added a Wimbledon title by defeating Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 in the final. Walking through a Centre Court hallway after the match, she saw her name newly added to the list of Wimbledon champions alongside Novotna’s.

“The only thing that was going through my head was that I miss Jana a lot. It was just very, very emotional. I think she would be proud,” she said.

Despite initially holding doubts due to a challenging season marred by a back injury and illness, Krejcikova’s triumph came as a surprise, even to herself and her loved ones. Her 2024 record stood at just 7-9 before arriving at Wimbledon, where she was seeded 31st out of 32. The road to victory was further tested by a three-set battle in the first round, which only added to her uncertainties.

However, by the end of the tournament, she stood victorious. Paolini, the seventh seed and finalist, complimented Krejcikova: “You play such beautiful tennis.”

With this win, Krejcikova became the eighth different woman to clinch the Wimbledon title over the past eight editions. Last year’s champion, also from the Czech Republic, was unseeded Marketa Vondrousova, who exited in the first round this year.

For Paolini, runner-up to Iga Swiatek at the French Open last month, this made her the first woman since Serena Williams in 2016 to reach the finals of both Roland Garros and Wimbledon in the same season, and the first since Venus Williams in 2002 to lose both.

“If I keep this level,” said the 28-year-old Italian, “I think I can have the chance to do great things.”

The match itself was filled with twists and turns, particularly in the final game, which took 14 points to resolve before Krejcikova converted her third match point as Paolini sent a backhand wide.

“I was just telling myself to be brave,” said Krejcikova, who also boasts seven Grand Slam titles in women’s doubles and three in mixed doubles.

From the beginning, Krejcikova dominated, winning 10 of the initial 11 points and taking five of the first six games, while the crowd showed support for Paolini, cheering words of encouragement in Italian like “Forza!” and “Calma!”

“She was taking the ball earlier,” Paolini noted, “and she was moving me.”

Initially, Paolini appeared fatigued from her historic 2-hour, 51-minute semifinal win over Donna Vekic, but she rallied after a break before the second set, taking control of the baseline exchanges while Krejcikova’s errors increased.

From 3-all in the last set, Paolini’s double fault led to a crucial break for Krejcikova, who then held serve at love for 5-3 and eventually closed out the championship.

During the trophy ceremony, Krejcikova remembered Novotna’s influence on both her tennis career and life, similar to her speech after her 2021 Paris win.

Later, at her news conference, Krejcikova revealed that she often dreams of Novotna and they converse in these dreams. When asked what she would like to say to Novotna now that they both are Wimbledon champions, Krejcikova smiled and responded, “I would like to hear what she would tell me.”

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