Aussie tennis fans shattered over the withdrawal of Alex de Minaur have been given something to cheer for, with Jordan Thompson and Max Purcell making the doubles final on a day of drama at Wimbledon. The Aussie pairing stunned top-seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos 6-4 6-4 to book an unexpected place in the final at the All England Club.
It came as the first of a number of major shocks on Thursday at Wimbledon, with the women’s singles semi-finals producing massive drama. Jasmine Paolini became the first Italian woman to reach the Wimbledon singles final after coming back to beat a bawling Donna Vekic, before Barbora Krejcikova stunned former champion Elena Rybakina.
Paolini won 2-6 6-4 7-6 (10-8) in the longest women’s semi-final at the All England Club ever. Paolini and Vekic were both in unchartered territory, with Vekic playing her first semi-final at a major and Paolini having never won a match on grass before this year.
And it showed for both, with Vekic breaking down in tears during a pressure-packed third set. The Croatian took the opening set comfortably with two breaks of Paolini’s serve, but the Italian was more aggressive in the second.
The pair racked up a plethora of unforced errors in the decider amid a number of breaks of serve, and Vekic’s emotions got the better of her. The Croatian couldn’t hold back her tears – even before the match had ended – and she also broke down as she left the court after the loss.
In contrast, Paolini looked focused and energised at the end of the two-hour, 51-minute match. “These last months have been crazy for me,” said the 28-year-old, who also made the French Open final last month. “I am trying to focus on what I have to do on court and I love playing tennis. It is amazing to be here and it is a dream. It was an intense match and I tried to play my best and now it’s time to recover. I need an ice bath as my legs are a little bit tired.
Vekic later said: “It was a tough, tough match. I thought I was going to die in the third set. I had so much pain in my arm, in my leg. I was more crying because I had so much pain, I didn’t know how I could keep playing.
Krejcikova was also in tears after beating Rybakina, but they were tears of joy. The 2021 French Open champion prevailed 3-6 6-3 6-4 as Centre Court fans were treated to a pair of roller-coaster encounters.
“(There’s) a lot of joy, a lot emotions,” she said. “Also a lot of relief and I’m just super proud. I was down, I started 0-4, I was happy that I won the first game. I started to be in the zone and I didn’t want to leave the zone.”
