LONDON — Even Elena Rybakina didn’t expect to win Wimbledon this year. She didn’t even see herself reaching the second week.
She knew she had been putting in the work and had long-term dreams for herself, but she wasn’t happy with her preparation ahead of the tournament and had struggled with injuries recently. Rybakina, 23, didn’t have many expectations for herself when she started play at the tournament.
But match by match, against opponents like Simona Halep and Bianca Andreescu, both former major champions, Rybakina proved to herself what she was capable of. And on Saturday, Rybakina stunned the world — and even herself — with a 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 comeback victory over Ons Jabeur on Centre Court for the first major title of her career.
After the final point had been won as Jabeur’s backhand sailed out of bounds, the normally reserved Rybakina puffed out her cheeks and shook her head, seemingly in disbelief. She smiled only after she had shaken hands with Jabeur and the chair umpire.
“I’m actually speechless,” Rybakina said on court moments later. “To be a winner is just amazing, I don’t have the words to say how happy I am.”
How did Rybakina win on Saturday and what does it mean for her going forward? Here are our key takeaways.
The moment Elena Rybakina became a Wimbledon champion 👏 #Wimbledon | #CentreCourt100 pic.twitter.com/gVCU9oqxx5
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 9, 2022
That serve
Entering the match, Rybakina had a tournament-leading 49 aces — 19 more than any other woman — and was averaging 8.2 per match. Not to mention, she had the second-fastest serve speed among the women at a blistering 122 mph (trailing only Coco Gauff‘s 124 mph). It had been a dominant, and nearly unstoppable, asset for Rybakina over the fortnight. But in the opening set on Saturday, Jabeur completely neutralized it — and Rybakina failed to record an ace for the first set all tournament.
But that dip in dominance didn’t last. Rybakina rediscovered her serve — and form, and all-around level — in the second set. In the final game of the set, she won every point on her serve, and sealed the set with an ace. Ultimately, she had four aces on the day, including one that notched 117 mph in the final game of the match, and perhaps most impressively, didn’t get broken again.
Fighting spirit
Never one to show much emotion on court, Rybakina stayed calm and composed despite not having the crowd on her side and Jabeur’s early control. If she was fazed, it never showed….
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at www.espn.com – TENNIS…