Marketa Vondrousova came to the All England Club last year unable to play tennis ever.
He had a plaster cast on his left arm that had been repaired by surgery, so his trip was limited to seeing the sights around London with his sister and cheering on his fellow competitor. Wimbledon.
The tour was very memorable: He is leaving as a grand slam champion.
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Vondrousova became the first unseeded woman to win Wimbledon on Sunday morning, coming back in every set to win 6-4, 6-4 to beat the 2022 champion. Our Jabeur in the final.
“I don’t really know what is happening now. It’s an amazing feeling,” Vondrousova, the 24-year-old left-winger from the Czech Republic, said at the victory ceremony.
“After everything I’ve been through – I had the players last year [at] this time it’s just amazing that I can stand here and hold this. Tennis is crazy. “
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After being eliminated from April to October last year, Vondrousova finished last season at number 99. She reached Wimbledon 42nd and was the first unseeded woman to reach the final at the All England Club in 60 years – the last, the 1963 finalist Billie Jean King, sat in front of the Royal Box along with Kate, Princess. in Wales.
After the match, King greeted Vondrousova with a hug and told her: “The first one hasn’t started yet. It makes me happy.”
Center Court’s retractable roof was closed for the last time, shielding everyone from the storm outside, and perhaps allowing Vondrousova’s smooth strokes to repeatedly find their intended mark.
His shot did not show any problems like Jabeur’s shot.
Vondrousova lost in the 2019 Roland-Garros final as a teenager. But in this match, they trailed every set but took the last four games of the first game, then the last three games of the second.
What did they do?
“I’ll drink beer, maybe,” said Vondrouova, laughing at the fans.
“It was an exhausting two weeks, and I just tried to stay together for the last few days. I was very nervous before the game, and I’m very grateful.”
Jabeur dropped to 0-3 in major finals. The 28-year-old from Tunisia is the only Arab woman and the only North African woman to have achieved singles at any grand slam tournament.
She lost to Elena Rybakina at the All England Club 12 months ago and to No.1 Iga Swiatek at the US Open last September.
“I think this is the most painful loss of my career,” Jabeur said, pausing to wipe away tears.
Jabeur’s tearful voice after being defeated
“Today will be a difficult day for me. But I don’t give up. I will come back strong and win this big race. “
Vondrousova’s run to her first slam title was hard to imagine a fortnight ago.
He was 1-4 in previous appearances at Wimbledon, only once reaching the second round on his grass courts, before going 7-0 in a tournament that included wins against five-seeded opponents.
Against No.6 Jabeur, Vondroussova fell just short behind. In the first set, he was down 2-0, then 4-2, before winning 16 of the last 18 points.
In the second set, the deficits were 3-1 and 4-3.
But Jabeur’s mistakes kept coming: She finished with 31 unforced errors, while Vondroussova made just 13.
Vondrousova takes the first set in the Wimbledon Final
During a break between sets, Jabeur went to the locker room. When he came out, he immediately made another mistake, and the spectators made a loud noise to show that they were on their side.
Another mistake gave Vondrousova a break, and Jabeur delivered the gift with another shot into the net. The match lasted 45 minutes, and Vondroussova led by a set and a break.
This is when Jabeur started to change things. She took three games in a row to take a 3-1 lead, showing signs of a possible comeback after dropping the opening set before beating Rybakina, No.2 Aryna Sabalenka and 2019 US Open champion Bianca Andreescu.
The crowd draws in the popular Jabeur, who is known as the Minister of Entertainment for what he does on and off the court – the level of support he receives goes up along with his style of play.
But it didn’t last long.
Vondrousova overcame the blip and advanced to the final.
After Vondrousova finished the match by reaching to clear the volley, she collapsed on the grass, then lay on her back with her hands on her visor and her face, the happiest she’d ever been on the court.
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