Barbora Krejcikova stuns to take Wimbledon crown — Quotes from champions and more
By Joey Dillon
The IX: Tennis Tuesday with Joey Dillon, July 16, 2024
Howdy, y’all, and happy Tennis Tuesday! What a Wimbledon we had this last fortnight. It sure wasn’t what I predicted, but I have to say the tennis produced in the second week was incredibly high-quality. As I do with every Slam, I’m going to share my own thoughts like Jon Wertheim. First, what a tournament for Barbora Krejcikova.
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She came in barely seeded and had only won seven matches the entire year and now leaves England a two-time singles Grand Slam champion. She was pretty much assured a Hall of Fame entry on her doubles accolades alone, but this title more than confirms it. She also wins off of the court for her incredible Q&A on Twitter with fans.
Jasmine Paolini, take a bow. To follow up your maiden Grand Slam final one with another right after is no easy feat. Her semifinal victory over Donna Vekic was perhaps the greatest match of the tournament and I was happy to see the Italian overcome her finals nerves by storming back to take the second against Krejcikova. Now in the Top 5, she’s got a target on her back but could the North American swing bring her that trophy?
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Katerina Siniakova is perhaps the most versatile doubles player on the planet and her doubles title with Taylor Townsend proves it. She made the Australian Open semifinals with Storm Sanders, won Roland Garros with Coco Gauff and now has another Wimbledon crown. However, the highlight of their run was Townsend’s reaction to finally winning her first Grand Slam. A junior phenom criticized for her weight and to have her career-best play after maternity leave is inspiring.
Hsieh Su-Wei and Jan Zielinski captured their second Grand Slam title of the year with a win over Giuliana Olmos and Santiago Gonzalez. A doubles legend, it’s crazy to think Hsieh never had a mixed doubles title until their Australian Open win this year.
Donna Vekic has always been one of the most underrated grass court players on tour and what a joy it was to finally see her break through not only to get past the fourth round, but outlast Lulu Sun and make her first Grand Slam semifinal. Though she lost to Paolini in a final set tiebreaker, she should keep her head up high because she’s on the verge of a re-entry into the Top 20 and a career-high ranking.
Renata Jamrichova ended her junior career with her second Grand Slam of 2024 by defeating Emerson Jones to claim the Girl’s Singles trophy. The Junior No. 1 sits at No. 542 in the WTA rankings, but if there’s a name to keep your eye on, it’s her. The doubles title was won by the all-American duo of Tyra Grant and Iva Jovic.
This year’s Wimbledon seemed to have more slips and injuries than some previous editions, most notably Madison Keys hurting her hamstring as she served 5-2 in the third against Paolini that ultimately ended in retirement. Sure, there was more rain than usual, but what can Wimbledon do to erase issues like these?
Is it time to get rid of the best-of-five set format for good or perhaps start including women? I say first four rounds are best-of-three for both genders and then expand from the quarterfinals through final. It’s time to make it even.
Until New York, it’s onto links for now!
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This Week in Women’s Tennis
Martina Trevisan took home the WTA 125 Nordea Open in Bastad, while compatriot Lucia Bronzetti took the WTA 125 Grand Est Open 88 title in Contrexeville. The doubles titles were won by Peangtarn Plipuech and Tsao Chia Yi and Oksana Kalashnikova and Iryna Shymanovich, respectively.
Congratulations to Erin Routliffe, your newest World No. 1 in doubles and the first woman from New Zealand to achieve the milestone:
Merrett Stierheim, the WTA CEO from 1986 to 1990, has passed away at the age of 90.
ICYMI, Serena Williams slayed as host of this year’s ESPY Awards, where Coco Gauff was named Best Tennis Player.
Martina Navratilova commemorated the 50th anniversary of Chris Evert’s first Wimbledon title with the legend, recapping her thoughts leading up to the first of her three titles.
Tweet of the week
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Five at The IX: Wimbledon Champions
Q. When did Wimbledon become a dream of yours? How does the reality match the dream?
BARBORA KREJCIKOVA: It’s tough to say. I mean, winning any slam is great. Winning here at the Wimbledon is huge for me.
But I wouldn’t really say it was kind of like my dreams when I was very little. I have like a little notebook that I wrote when I was, like, 12. I don’t know, maybe like three, four months ago I was listing through that notebook.
I had there that in the future, like back then when I was 12, I wrote that in the future I would like to win the French Open. So it was quite a big dream for me to win the French Open.
To be honest, maybe things shifted a little bit when I actually met Jana and when she was telling me all the stories about Wimbledon, about the grass, how difficult it was for her to win the title and how emotional she was when she actually made it.
I think since then I started to see the Wimbledon like the biggest tournament in the world.
Q. I remember you saying in Paris that you’re somebody that dreams step-by-step. I wonder now that you’re a two-time Grand Slam finalist, you’re going to be No. 5 in the world, I wondered what the next step of the dream is?
JASMINE PAOLINI: I don’t know (laughing). I don’t know. I don’t know.
Sometimes I’m a little bit scared to dream too much. I have to say that. I don’t know. I’m going back, trying to practice, to stay in the present, as I said many times. This is the goal for me, my team, to try to keep this level as much as possible.
If I keep this level, I think I can have the chance to do great things. But if I’m not keeping this level, it’s not coming anything good.
I don’t know what to dream right now. Today I was dreaming to hold the trophy, but didn’t went well. Yeah, I’m just enjoying the position where I am right now, 5 in the world.
It’s unbelievable, honestly. I just did two finals in two Grand Slams. I have to be also happy with the results. Also a little bit disappointed, yeah.
Q. Taylor, Wimbledon is quite special. How special is it to win your first Grand Slam here at Wimbledon?
TAYLOR TOWNSEND: Yeah, I mean, it feels absolutely amazing. Getting to my first Grand Slam final in the US Open in ’22, losing to this one, obviously that would have been amazing to win on home soil. But Wimbledon has such a special significance, the history behind the event, all that it means.
For me it’s actually kind of crazy because winning the juniors doubles in 2012 here, then coming back 12 years later and being able to win the women’s. I was thinking to myself, I am at the practice facility, now I’m in the real facility. It’s so special to me.
I’m really grateful. I’ve been working really hard to get to this place. Like I said, I’ve gotten so close and haven’t gotten over the finish line. I think in this moment and today, I felt prepared because I had been there before. It didn’t feel new. I was just locked in on what I wanted to do and what we wanted to do as a team. That’s the only thing my mind was on from the start of the match till the finish.
I felt more prepared and more ready for this moment to pounce on it and to grab it because I felt like it was ours for the taking.
THE MODERATOR: Mixed doubles Wimbledon champions to add to your Australian Open title. How are you feeling?
HSIEH SU-WEI: It’s great to be back again in the Centre Court. Of course, thanks to Jan to bring us back to this amazing court again.
THE MODERATOR: Jan, how are you feeling?
JAN ZIELINSKI: I’m feeling amazing. It’s a privilege to, like I said in interview on the court, to be on the court and even bigger privilege to win on the court. Su-Wei has done it a couple of times before in the past. Her experience helped us to get back on Centre Court after the second round, get through some tough matches. And I couldn’t be more proud of us and how we fought and how we cooperated together.
So thank you so much for playing together. Yeah, it’s a pretty good partnership we’re having so far.
Q. Do you think the fact that you knew it was your last tournament kind of freed you up to enjoy it?
RENATA JAMRICHOVA: Yeah, actually I played for no points, no win. I just wanted to, as I said so many times, just play here and just enjoy the last days with these guys here and with my friends here with the juniors, yeah.
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| By: Annie Peterson, @AnnieMPeterson, AP Women’s Soccer |
| Tuesdays: Tennis |
| By: Joey Dillon, @JoeyDillon, Freelance Tennis Writer |
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| By: Howard Megdal, @HowardMegdal, The Next |
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