Prior to Wimbledon 2023, Marketa Vondrousova had a limited track record on grass, having won only four main-draw matches on the surface throughout her career. However, the 2019 French Open runner-up advanced to the final of the grass-court Grand Slam with a solid 6-3 6-3 victory over Elina Svitolina.
In the first women’s singles semifinal at this year’s Wimbledon, Vondrousova broke Svitolina’s serve three times in a row to take the first set. Building on her momentum, the Czech player swiftly established a commanding 4-0 lead in the second set, seemingly on her way to an easy victory. Nevertheless, Svitolina, a new mom on the tour, who had defeated four Grand Slam champions en route to the semifinal, had other plans.
Svitolina displayed remarkable resilience, winning three consecutive games to get the second set back on serve. Despite her efforts, the former world No.3 was unable to complete a full comeback, as Vondrousova regained her composure and secured another crucial break. In the following game, the world No.42 Vondrousova held her serve, closing out the match on her first match point and improving her career win-loss record on grass to 10-11.
The final obstacle between Vondrousova and the Wimbledon title will be last year’s runner-up Ons Jabeur, who fought past Aryna Sabalenka and denied the Belarusian the No.1 WTA ranking.
