Wimbledon 2023: Marketa Vondrousova defeats Ons Jabeur to win maiden Grand Slam title

Marketa Vondrousova became the lowest-ranked and first unseeded woman to win Wimbledon on Saturday, beating 2022 runner-up Ons Jabeur 6-4, 6-4. Vondrousova is a 24-year-old left-handed player from Czech Republic who is ranked 42nd. She was the first unseeded woman to reach the final of the All England Club in 60 years, the last, 1963 runner-up Billie Jean King, sitting in the front row of the Royal Box alongside Kate, Princess of Wales, on Saturday. ,

The main stadium’s retractable roof was closed to protect everyone outside from the gusts of 20 miles per hour (30 kph), and which may have prevented Vondrousova’s smooth lefty strokes from bar- Bar helped to find the desired mark. There was no tension in his shots like Jabeur’s.

Vondrousova fell behind in each set but took the last four games of the first set, then the last three games of the second set. This is his first Grand Slam title. She lost in the final of the 2019 French Open as a teenager.

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Jabeur lost 0–3 in the major final. The 28-year-old from Tunisia is the only Arab woman and the only North African woman to reach this far in singles at any Grand Slam tournament. But she lost to Elena Rybakina at the All England Club and to No. 1 Iga Swiatek at the US Open last year.

Marketa’s magic moment

Marketa Vondrousova became the third Czech woman to win the women’s singles title after defeating Ons Jabeur 6-4, 6-4.#wimbledon pic.twitter.com/AAHThI1ZYn— wimbledon (@wimbledon) 15 July 2023

Vondrousova’s lead up to the trophy two weeks ago was hard to imagine. She went 1–4 in previous appearances at Wimbledon before going 7–0 this fortnight, reaching the second round only once on its grass courts. The year before, Vondrousova was unable to even compete at Wimbledon, instead showing off a cast on her surgically corrected left wrist to cheer a friend.

Vondrousova was sidelined from April to October due to that injury and in 2022 she finished only ranked 99th. They exchanged early breaks of serve and after 23 minutes it was 2-all. They again exchanged breaks, each at love, and it was 4-all after 34 minutes.

But Jabeur’s mistakes kept coming? She finished with 27 unforced errors and Vondrousova went on to claim 16 of her last 18 points in the first set.

During the break between sets, Jabeur headed to the locker room. When she came back she immediately made another mistake and the audience booed to show their support. Another miscue gave Vondrousova a breakpoint and Jabeur gifted her with another shot into the net. The match was 45 minutes long and Vondrousova was ahead by a set and a break.

That’s when Jabeur introduced some changes. She won three games in a row to go 3-1, perhaps indicating the kind of comeback she made after losing the opening set before defeating Rybakina, No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka and 2019 US Open champion Bianca Andreescu.

The crowd was pulling for the popular Jabeur, who was nicknamed the Minister of Happiness for his demeanor on and off the court, increasing his level of support along with his level of play. It didn’t last.

Vondrousova overcame the setback and reached the final, teaming up with her husband for the first time during the tournament. When she ended the match with a jumping volley, she fell to the grass, the happiest she had ever been on the surface.