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In a thrilling comeback victory, Jasmine Paolini battled her way to a second consecutive Grand Slam final. The Italian, seeded 7th, defeated Donna Vekic 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (10-8) at Wimbledon 2024 on Thursday, July 11. The match, lasting a grueling 2 hours and 51 minutes, set the record for the longest women's semifinal in Wimbledon history.
Paolini, first Italian to make it to Wimbledon final
Paolini has also became the first Italian to make it to the Wimbledon final.
Paolini displayed incredible resilience, overcoming a first-set loss, a near defeat at 4-4 in the second, and twice trailing by a break in the third set. Despite these setbacks, she never gave up, eventually converting her third match point when Vekic's forehand sailed out. This Wimbledon triumph follows Paolini's runner-up finish to Iga Swiatek at Roland Garros just last month, showcasing her dominance on both clay and grass courts. Notably, her achievement makes her the first woman since Serena Williams in 2015-2016 to reach the finals of both the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year.
"These last months have been crazy for me," Paolini said with a laugh.
Jasmine Paolini's next challenge comes on Saturday. She'll face either the No. 4 seed Elena Rybakina, who won Wimbledon in 2022, or the No. 31 seed Barbora Krejcikova, the 2021 French Open champion. Both opponents boast Grand Slam titles, making it a tough battle ahead for Paolini.
The men's semifinals are also set for Friday, featuring Carlos Alcaraz against Daniil Medvedev and Novak Djokovic against Lorenzo Musetti.
Paolini's victory at Centre Court wasn't a walk in the park for either player. Donna Vekic visibly struggled throughout the match, even crying between points and during breaks in the later stages.
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Paolini's recent success has been a true Cinderella story. Prior to this year, she had never advanced past the second round at any major tournament. In fact, she had lost in the first or second round at 16 consecutive Grand Slam appearances before reaching the fourth round at the Australian Open in January. Additionally, her Wimbledon record was a dismal 0-3 before this year's tournament. Even on grass courts in general, she had no wins at the tour level until a recent tuneup event.
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