July 10, (THEWILL) – In a thrilling Wimbledon final, Elena Rybakina defeated Ons Jabeur 3-6 6-2 6-2 coming back after falling behind in the first set for her first Wimbledon title.
Jabeur, the third seed and the favourite to win the Grand Slam in the absence of world number one Iga Swiatek, had the upper hand in the first set, but Rybakina maintained her calm to play faultless tennis to overcome Jabeur’s hard-hitting and win her first-ever Grand Slam.
Rybakina therefore became the first Kazakh in history to win a major championship after being the first from her country to ever reach a Grand Slam final.
After clinching victory, the number 17 seed displayed a very composed and confident demeanour, perhaps not fully realising she had just won her first Grand Slam championship. She however admitted to nerves: “I was super nervous before and during the match. I’m glad it’s finished! I’ve never felt something like this. I want to congratulate Ons for the great match and everything she has achieved. She is an inspiration not just to the younger generation but to everybody.”
On her part, Jabeur said: “I want to congratulate Elena, [who] played amazing[ly]. She deserves this. Elena stole my title but it’s okay! I love this tournament so much and I feel really sad. But this is tennis and there can only be one winner. I’m really happy that I’m trying to inspire many generations from my country; I hope they’re listening.”
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.
