4 years ago, Garbine Muguruza defeated Venus Williams in the Wimbledon final and seemed to be on its way to dominating the world. After last year's achievement at Roland Garros, Muguruza, then 23, has proven herself to be an all-round player - with a strong will to win.
She held the No. 1 spot for 4 weeks and ended the year in 2nd place, behind Simona Halep. But then, suddenly everything evaporated like fog in the forest. The next 3 years, according to the standard of expectation, were extremely disappointing. Her year-end rankings are 18, 36 and 15 respectively.
But on Wednesday evening (17.11 - Mexico time), after 3 confusing years, Muguruza confirmed his return to Akron WTA Finals Guadalajara. In the final match of the season, Muguruza defeated Anett Kontaveit 6-3, 7-5 to win the championship.
Muguruza, now 28 years old, the oldest champion of the year-end event since Serena Williams 7 years ago - and the first Spaniard to win - was moved to heart when receiving the Billie Jean King trophy. At the end of the tournament, she will become the 3rd ranked tennis player on the WTA rankings.
Muguruza shared: I am very happy to have proven to myself once again, that I can be the best. That puts me in a very good position for next year.
At a pivotal moment in her career, this victory is a message directly to Kontaveit and the rest of the new wave of women's tennis in the world. Im still here, in the game. Believe it or not, it depends on you, but Karolina Pliskova is the only one in the Top 10 who is older than me.
Muguruza always has the ability to control the match very well, making even the strongest opponents feel cold back. Kontaveit, 25, has been playing strongly at the end of the season, winning 29/32 matches and winning 4 titles in a 10-week period, and has also suffered losses.
With the No. 6 seed, Mexico as her home, when she was born and spent the first 6 years in Caracas, Venezuela. Therefore, Mexicoese fans cheered her for the whole week.
When Muguruza won the first set of the final with a left chip, it was really amazing. When Kontaveit's left shot missed the net at the end, Muguruza fell near the end of the field, crying. wip away the drops of wishes and place your hand on your heart, that is the moment you have been waiting for for so long.
Muguruza's victory is also an affirmation of a veteran in a surprising season. Kontaveit is one of six players in the Top 10 for the first time. The remaining 5 players are Iga Swiatek, Barbora Krejcikova, Maria Sakkari, Paula Badosa and Ons Jabeur - the first female Arabian player in history to make the Top 10. Five of them are in the Guadalajara tournament, and all are 27 years old or younger, meaning they are entering their peak.
In addition, the 2021 season saw the rise of young tennis players such as Emma Raducanu, Leylah Fernandez and Coco Gauff, as well as the revival of veterans Karolina Pliskova, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Angelique Kerber.
What brings success to Muguruza at the moment? Perhaps, that was the time she parted ways with coach Sam Sumyk in 2019. After that, when they failed at Wimbledon and the US Open, Muguruza shortened their season, taking an exploration of Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa.
On a difficult 5-day journey, Muguruza and his team passed through ice-finished rivers with temperatures almost zero. And, perhaps that is why the 5,500m height in Guadalajara could not be difficult for Muguruza, when she conquered the 5,895m high Uhuru peak.
When Muguruza finished the match and ran towards coach Conchita Martinez, that showed what the meaning was. If you use victory to describe anything, Muguruza is back.
