The spirit of the late Jana Novotna, one of Wimbledon’s most-missed champions, hovered over Centre Court on Saturday as her friend and protege Barbora Krejcikova claimed the title.
Krejcikova showed enormous guts and resilience to stave off an equally determined opponent – Italy’s Jasmine Paolini – in a memorable final. She needed three match points to finally get over the line, after two hours of riveting tennis.
When Paolini dominated the second set of this fascinating contest, it seemed as though Wimbledon might anoint its first Italian champion. Instead, Krejcikova became the second unheralded Czech player to lift the Venus Rosewater Dish in as many seasons, after Marketa Vondrousova last year.
Krejcikova had at least been seeded – at No 31 in the list – while Vondrousova was not. But her previous outings at Wimbledon, which delivered six wins and three defeats, had not suggested a champion in waiting.
Still, Krejcikova has clearly benefited from Novotna’s guidance. “Pretty much her last words were ‘Just enjoy, and just try to win a grand slam’,” Krejcikova said after winning the 2021 French Open. “I know that all of this has happened because she is looking after me from up there. I just really miss her.”
The two women both came from Brno, the Czech Republic’s second city. And when Krejcikova was a promising 18-year-old, she took it upon herself to seek out Novotna – the 1998 Wimbledon singles champion – and ask for her advice.
Together, they spoke about the challenges of performing under pressure. Novotna had committed one of tennis’s most notorious chokes when she surrendered a 4-1 deciding-set lead to Steffi Graf in the 1993 Wimbledon, and then wept on the Duchess of Kent’s shoulder. But she would achieve redemption five years later, when she defeated France’s Nathalie Tauziat in straight sets.
“She was telling me a lot of stories about her journeys here and how she was trying to win Wimbledon,” said Krejcikova of Novotna, who died of cancer in 2017, as she prepared for this match. “I was so far when we had this talk and I mean, now I’m here. Wow, I’m in the finals.” After her win, she said that she dreamt about Novotna “a lot” and that they were “talking in the dreams”.
Krejcikova needed to display all her mental strength in a fraught final game that saw her save two break points with clean winners. In the end, she banged down one last precision serve – which registered 108mph on the speed gun – to close out a magnificent 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 win in an hour and 56 minutes.
The joy of this final lay in a wide variety of rally styles. Both women are proficient doubles players – especially Krejcikova, who has won 10 slam titles in the team format – and their ability to hit volleys, lobs and overheads kept each other guessing.
Paolini enjoyed the majority of the support. At 5ft 4in, she would have been the shortest Wimbledon champion of the Open era. Her terrier-esque energy and open-hearted approach have made her a fan favourite throughout this event.
The crowd did their best to keep Paolini’s spirits up when Krejcikova reeled off nine straight points on the way to an early 2-0 lead. The Czech kept up a remarkable first-serve percentage in that opening set, missing only two of 21 attempts. But her rhythm deserted her in the second set and Paolini took advantage, bringing her deceptively powerful forehand into play.
Cue a bathroom break for Krejcikova, who composed herself and squared her shoulders in front of the mirror. The decider was surprisingly serve-dominated, given that neither of these players is known for being a female John Isner. But it was Paolini who faltered, giving up the seventh game when she hit her only double fault of the match on break point down.
In hindsight, it was a mistake for Paolini to call a Hawk-Eye review against the “out” call on her first serve. The delay, while she waited for the replay, left her too much time to think about her second.
The presentation ceremony found club chair Debbie Jevans giving away the trophies, while Annabel Croft handled the interviews. “It’s definitely the best day of my tennis career and also the best day of my life,” said Krejcikova. “I think nobody believes that I got to the final and nobody believes that I won Wimbledon. I still can’t believe it.”
Asked about Novotna, she replied: “I think that day, knocking on her door, it changed my life. Because in that period when I finished the juniors, I didn’t know what to do – should I continue playing pro or go into education?
“She was the one who told me I had the potential and I should definitely turn pro. Before she passed away she told me I can win a slam. I achieved that in Paris in 2021 – it was an unbelievable moment for me and I never really dreamed I would win the same trophy as Jana did in 1998.”
Krejcikova beats Paolini to win maiden Wimbledon title, as it happened
05:06 PM BST
Krejcikova the champion
After her victory, Krejcikova pointed to the sky and blew a kiss in tribute to her former mentor, coach and 1998 Wimbledon champion Jana Novotna. Her performance today would have made Jana proud.
Well I think that day,…
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