On the evening of July 13 (Vietnam time), two players Barbora Krejcikova and Jasmine Paolini faced off in the women's singles final of Wimbledon 2024 . No candidate is rated higher, although Paolini is seeded 7th, and Krejcikova is ranked 31st among the seeds.
The match between two 28-year-old players promises to be tense and dramatic. However, the drama was not seen in the two sets.
In set 1, Paolini entered the game very poorly, losing a break in the first service game. Many unforced errors by the Italian player, along with a low serve (52%) and return rate (16%). As a result, Paolini lost another break in game 5 and lost set 1 after only 36 minutes.
It seemed that Krejcikova would go straight to becoming the second Czech tennis player to win Wimbledon in a row - after Marketa Vondrousova in 2023, but the course of the second set reversed.
The match turned 180 degrees, when from the 1st serve winning rate to 84% in set 1, Krejcikova only reached 53%. Her self-miss rate also skyrocketed, while Paolini limited her errors.
Paolini returned exactly what happened in set 1 - winning 2 breaks, ending with a 6-2 victory in 36 minutes.
The drama only came in the deciding set 3, when both players understood that every mistake would come at a high price. Paolini started with a white win, Krejcikova did the same in her serve game.
The two players continued to make good use of their service games until game 7, when Paolini double-faulted to let Krejcikova break, taking the lead 4-3. The white game then helped the player who won the 2021 French Open create a 2-set advantage.
In the serve game, the drama came when Krejcikova suddenly double-faulted, then failed herself, giving Paolini a chance to reclaim the game. A bit of psychology affected Krejcikova at championship-point but the poor shot put Paolini in the outer edge.
The second championship point could not be taken advantage of, but in the end, on the third chance, the Czech player succeeded when Paolini returned the ball out.
With the Wimbledon 2024 championship , Krejcikova has the second Grand Slam of her career, while Paolini finished second at a Grand Slam tournament for the second time in 2024, after the French Open.
