Jasmine Paolini edges Donna Vekic in marathon match to reach first Wimbledon final

LONDON – Italy’s Jasmine Paolini reached her first Wimbledon final with a stirring fightback in a match she “will remember forever”, beating tearful Donna Vekic 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (10-8) on July 11 in the longest women’s semi-final at the All England Club.

Paolini had never won a main draw match at Wimbledon before 2024, but the world No. 7 tenaciously saw off Vekic in two hours and 51 minutes on Centre Court to secure a second successive Grand Slam final appearance.

Said Paolini: “It was really tough today, she played unbelievable. She was hitting winners everywhere, I was struggling at the beginning, but I told myself to fight for every ball.

“I’m so happy with this win. This match I will remember forever. I was trying to think about what to do point by point, because it was really difficult. There is no place better than here to fight for every ball.”

The 28-year-old, who lost the French Open final in June, will face 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina or Czech 31st seed Barbora Krejcikova in the July 13 final.

After surviving the emotional encounter with Vekic, Paolini could celebrate becoming the first Italian woman to reach the Wimbledon final.

It has been a breakthrough year for Paolini, who reached her maiden Grand Slam final at Roland Garros before losing to world No. 1 Iga Swiatek.

Paolini, who made the Australia Open last 16 in January, had not gone past the second round in any Slam before this year.

Without a main draw win at the All England Club heading into the tournament, Paolini now has six victories under her belt and has dropped just two sets in the process.

She said: “These last few months have been crazy for me. I’m just trying to focus on what I have to do on court.

“I love playing tennis, it’s a dream. I was watching Wimbledon finals when I was a kid. I’m enjoying and being in the present.”

Vekic paid the price for 57 unforced errors, with the semi-final fittingly ending on another wild forehand from the unseeded Croat.

Unable to contain her frustration at letting 3-1 and 4-3 leads slip in the last set, Vekic broke down in tears in the closing stages of a roller-coaster clash.

Vekic landed the first break in the fifth game of the opening set, taking a 3-2 lead after two wayward forehands by Paolini.

Unloading baseline winners and deft drop shots at will, the Croat broke again in the seventh game and emphatically served out the set.

Paolini could not convert her first break opportunity of the match in the fourth game of the second set.

But Vekic squandered two break points in the following game, losing her momentum as the feisty Paolini levelled the match with a ferocious forehand to take the set with a break at 5-4.

Vekic took a lengthy break off court to gather herself before the decider, re-emerging to break in the first game of the third set.

Yet as the tension mounted, the nervy 28-year-old stumbled as Paolini broke back to level at 3-3.

Vekic earned another break in the following game before handing Paolini a lifeline by tamely dropping serve for 4-4.

In a dramatic finale, Vekic ignored an apparent injury to save a match point in the 10th game.

When Vekic could not take a break point in the next game, she broke down in tears at the change of ends.

Vekic managed to compose herself enough to save a second match point, but she blew a 3-1 lead in the tiebreak as Paolini gutted out a memorable victory.

In the day’s second semi-final, world No. 4 Rybakina will be chasing a second Wimbledon final appearance.

Krejcikova has a 2-0 record against the Russian-born Kazakh. The result of that match was unavailable at press time. AFP