- Barbora Krejcikova won 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 to lift her second Grand Slam title
- The Czech star survived a remarkable comeback from Jasmine Paolini
- Paolini lost a second consecutive major final and Wimbledon had a new winner
Barbora Krejcikova kept her cool to survive a sensational comeback from Jasmine Paolini and claim the Wimbledon women’s singles title.
The 28-year-old won her second career Grand Slam after her triumph at the French Open in 2021.
A fascinating encounter that ended 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 as SW19 saw a new champion for the seventh consecutive year.
“Without a doubt, it was the best day of my tennis career and the best day of my life,” summed up the Czech star as he enjoyed the applause on Centre Court.
In a thrilling first set, Krejcikova dominated Paolini with a flurry of hard forehands and her superb hitting versatility.
Barbara Krejcikova survived a remarkable comeback to win the Wimbledon women’s singles title against Jasmine Paolini
The Czech star has lifted her second Grand Slam title, having previously won the French Open.
Krejcikova was formidable in the first set and cruised to a 6-2 victory.
However, Paolini came out fighting in the second set and won it by the same score, turning the match around.
The Czech star broke the Italian’s serve twice and had a first serve percentage of 90 percent to win the first set in just 35 minutes.
But, after a seemingly magical bathroom stop, Paolini emerged with renewed confidence and took the first three games of the second set as the match looked unrecognisable.
Moving deeper into the court, Paolini was able to take control of the match and also broke his opponent twice en route to a convincing 6-2 victory.
A match that looked like it would be over in an instant after the first set took on a new and appealing tone when Paolini entered the final set with a lead.
Both stars held serve for the first six games of the final set until Krejcikova took the seventh game following a double fault by Paolini.
The Italian regretted that mistake when Krejcikova won her next service game to make it 5-3.
Paolini did her job to take her next service game and made things difficult in the final match, taking Krejcikova to deuce four times, but the Czech star fought back to make history.
For Paolini, it is his second consecutive defeat in a Grand Slam final after the French Open.
The third set was much more contested, as both players held their serve, until Krejcokova managed to open the scoring in the seventh game.
Paolini was devastated after losing her second consecutive Grand Slam final
Krejcikova celebrated with her family and called it “the best day of her life”
Zendaya Coleman took a seat in the crowd as Center Court watched an exciting match.
Hugh Jackman and Kate Beckinsale were also seen in the audience during the three-set match.
She has made history in her own right, though. She battled through Wimbledon’s longest women’s semi-final to reach this stage, becoming the first Italian woman to make it that far in the process.
Krejcikova said: ‘I have no words. It’s unbelievable what just happened. Without a doubt, the best day of my tennis career and the best day of my life.
‘It’s very difficult to explain what I’m feeling right now. I’d like to congratulate Jasmine and her team. We were fighting for every ball and in the end I was the lucky one.
“I was telling myself to be brave. It was a very difficult match, a great final, a great competition. I’m very happy to be here and to be able to enjoy this moment.”
“The last two months have been crazy for me and I can’t thank my team, my family, everyone who is there enough. They always support me and believe in me and without them I wouldn’t be here,” said Paolini.
“The audience was amazing. I really enjoyed it.”
Famous faces had watched from the centre court stands as Hugh Jackman, Zendaya Coleman, Kate Beckinsale, Ellie Goulding, Pierce Brosnan and more took their seats.