June 12, (THEWILL)- In another fairytale ending of the women’s singles event at the French Open in Paris, the unseeded Barbora Krejcikova produced an inspired performance in the deciding set of the French Open final to overcome the challenge of Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia.
In what will become a famous fortnight for the 25-year-old from Brno, Czech Republic, Krejcikova was the example of composed and classy tennis, which she really needed to overcome the gutsy Russian in almost two hours on Court Philippe Chatrier.
It was remarkable that Krejcikova, who is not even yet in the main draw at Wimbledon nor at the US Open, repelled an impressive second-set resurgence from the Pavlyuchenkova by sticking that determined fearless play she had demonstrated all throughout the tournament at Roland Garros
The occasion was the first Grand Slam experience for the co-finalists and a fascinating test of his they were going to handle their nerves at the high stakes event. The Czech was quickly behind after she opened by losing her serve. But, she dug into her repute as a doubles winner to storm through the set thereafter.
By taking the next six games in succession, Krejcikova stamped her authority on proceedings to take the first set 6-1. However, there was a scary moment in the set when Krejcikova escaped injury by managing to slow herself before running into an advertising box on court.
She brilliantly got the ball from Pavlyuchenkova which drew her wide of the court and then expertly softened the impact as she ran into the sponsored box by the side of the net. Fortunately, she escaped injury.
Instead, it was the Russian that needed to be attended to for an injury sustained at the end of the second set before she took the match into a decider after winning Krejcikova 6-2. She required a lengthy treatment before the final set.
In that decider, the finalists threw everything they could to tip the scales in each other’s favour and clinch their debut singles’ Grand slam in their maiden final. Krejcikova found the extra motivation to break Pavlyuchenkova’s serve when it really mattered and carried the day with a 6-4 win.
The path to the final for the Czech was fraught with challenges. She had to overcome fifth seed Elina Svitolina and rising American duo of Sloane Stephens and Coco Gauff to lift this famous trophy and become a singles Grand Slam winner herself.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
