Paolini storms into first Wimbledon final

Italy’s Jasmine Paolini reached her first Wimbledon final with a stirring fightback to beat tearful Croatian Donna Vekic 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (10/8) on Thursday in the longest women’s semifinal at the All England Club.

Paolini had never won a main draw match at Wimbledon before this year, but the world No 7 tenaciously saw off Vekic in two hours and 51 minutes on Centre Court to secure a second successive Grand Slam final appearance.

The 28-year-old, who lost the French Open final last month, will face Czech 31st seed Barbora Krejcikova in Saturday’s final.

After surviving the emotional encounter with Vekic, Paolini could celebrate becoming the first Italian woman to reach the Wimbledon final.

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It has been a breakthrough year for Paolini, who reached her maiden Grand Slam final at Roland Garros before losing to world No 1 Iga Swiatek.

Paolini, who made the Australia Open last 16 in January, had not gone past the second round in any Slam before this year.

Without a win at the All England Club heading into the tournament, Paolini now has six victories under her belt and has dropped just two sets in the process.

“You know there is no place better than here to fight for every ball and every point,” Paolini said.

“I was struggling at the beginning. I was serving really bad, so I’m so happy. This match I will remember forever.”

Vekic paid the price for 57 unforced errors, with the semifinal fittingly ending on another wild forehand from the unseeded Croatian.

Unable to contain her frustration at letting 3-1 and 4-3 leads slip in the last set, Vekic broke down in tears in the closing stages of a rollercoaster clash.