Barbora Krejcikova held off Italian crowd favourite Jasmine Paolini to win the Wimbledon singles title on Saturday, coming through 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 on a sunlit Centre Court.
The Czech doubles specialist had dominated the opening set with a near-perfect display but was then rocked by a dazzling Paolini fightback that sent the showpiece into a decider.
A nervous third set swung Krejcikova's way when she broke serve at 3-3 and she went on to complete victory on her third match point, adding the Wimbledon title to the French Open crown she captured in 2021.
It was heartache for the popular Paolini who lost the French Open final a few weeks ago and was bidding to become the first Italian player to win a Wimbledon singles title.
Krejcikova, who also owns 10 doubles Grand Slam titles, including two at Wimbledon, is the latest in a long line of Czechs to win the singles at Wimbledon, following Marketa Vondrousova's triumph last year.
Krejcikova began the match in confident fashion, striking the ball sweetly on her way to a break of serve in the first game before holding for a 2-0 lead.
The 28-year-old from Brno was soon on the hunt for a double break but Paolini weathered some fierce ball-striking in her next service game to get herself on the scoreboard.
The Centre Court crowd came alive in the fourth game as Paolini showed unbelievable court coverage to stay in the point but to no avail as Krejcikova held for 3-1.
Paolini was chit-chatting to herself between points, trying to fire herself in the face of a Krejcikova onslaught but another dropped service game left her reeling.
Dominating the baseline exchanges with her extra power, Krejcikova pouched the opener in 35 minutes and Paolini disappeared off court, presumably for a deep breath.
The Italian returned with fire in her belly and immediately the momentum shifted as she seized on the first Krejcikova dip to move into a 3-0 lead with some fluent winners.
Suddenly it was Krejcikova who looked tight with consecutive double faults adding more fuel to the Paolini fire but the Czech steadied down to avoid slipping 4-0 behind.
It was all Paolini though in the second set as she rode a wave of fervent crowd support to take the final to a decider.
The momentum looked to be with Paolini but she wavered at 3-3 in the decider with a double fault handing over a break of serve. Krejcikova was rock-solid on serve as the title inched closer but looked consumed by nerves at 5-4.
Two match points came and went but she finally go the job done at the third attempt.
Afterwards, Krejcikova said on court: “I don't have any words right now, it's just unbelievable, it's definitely the best day of my tennis career and also the best day of my life."
"It’s super difficult to explain what I’m feeling right now. I would like to congratulate Jasmine and her team, she had great two weeks, it was a great final and we were fighting for every point.
"At the end I was the lucky one but it has been amazing what she’s been able to achieve in just a short period, so again congratulations."
She added: “Well, I think nobody believes it that I got to the final and nobody believes that I won Wimbledon. I still can't believe it.
"Two weeks ago I had a very tough match, and I wasn’t in good shape before that because I was injured and ill. I didn’t really have a good beginning to the season. It's unbelievable I'm stood here now and I've won Wimbledon. I have no idea [how it happened]."
Paolini said: "Hello everybody. Thank you for coming. To see this stadium full is a dream come true. Barbora, you played unbelievable. You play such beautiful tennis. Congrats to you and your team.
"The last two months have been crazy for me. I want to thank my team, my family. They always support me and I wouldn't be here without them. The crowd have been amazing. I received a lot of support. Just incredible to feel the love from them, I enjoy it so much.
"Today I am a little bit sad. I try to keep smiling because I have to remember today is still a good day, I made the final of Wimbledon. I remember as a kid watching the final and cheering for Federer I have to say. It's been a beautiful two weeks and I want to thank everyone who made it possible. The ball kids, the LTA. I'll forget someone but please don't be mad at me."
