Wimbledon, July 9: Too nervous to wave, Elena Rybakina stepped into the Centre Court sunshine before the Wimbledon final on Saturday and kept a firm double-grip on the black-and-red straps of the racket bag slung over her shoulders.
No wave. Not much of a look around. Her play early on betrayed some jitters, too, which makes sense considering it was her debut in a Grand Slam title match.
Nearly two hours of big swinging and plenty of sprinting later, she had won the championship at the All England Club with a 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 victory over Ons Jabeur – the first singles trophy at a major tournament for her adopted country of Kazakhstan. Even then, Rybakina’s reaction was muted as can be.
“Happy that it finished, to be honest,” the 23-year-old said, “because really, I never felt something like this.” She was born in Moscow and has represented Kazakhstan since 2018, when that country offered her funding to support her tennis career. The switch has been a topic of conversation during Wimbledon, because it bars all players who represent Russia or Belarus from entering the tournament due to war in Ukraine.
Since the WTA computer rankings began in 1975, just one woman ranked lower than the No 23 Rybakina has won Wimbledon – Venus Williams in 2007 at No 31, although she had been No 1 and already won three of her five career Wimbledon trophies.
Rybakina used her big serve and powerful forehand to overcome the No. 2-ranked Jabeur’s varied style, with its mix of spins and slices, to put a halt to the 27-year-old Tunisian’s 12-match winning streak, which came entirely on grass courts.
Jabeur was trying to become the first Arab or African woman to win a Slam singles title in the professional era, which dates to 1968. (AP)
