Barbora Krejcikova emulates late mentor Jana Novotna for Wimbledon triumph

LONDON: An inspired Barbora Krejcikova etched her name onto Wimbledon’s famed honours board alongside her late mentor Jana Novotna after the seasoned Czech survived a stirring fightback from Jasmine Paolini to seal a 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 victory in the final on Saturday.

The 2021 French Open champion added the Venus Rosewater Dish to her bulging trophy cabinet that also includes 10 Grand Slam doubles prizes besides an Olympic doubles gold medal from the Tokyo Games three years ago.

Moments after her triumph, Krejcikova was reflecting on a chat that she had as a junior with her idol Novotna, who lifted the Wimbledon title 26 years ago and tragically died in 2017 following a battle with ovarian cancer aged 49.

“Knocking on her door, it changed my life,” said Krejcikova, who reached out to Novotna for help by writing her a letter before they started working together in 2014.

“In that period, when I finished the juniors, I didn’t know what to do. Should I continue playing professionally or should I go into education?

“She was the one who told me I had the potential. I should definitely turn professional. Before she passed away she told me I can win a Grand Slam. I achieved that in Paris in 2021.

“It was an unbelievable moment for me and I never really dreamed I would win the same trophy as Jana did in 1998.”

Novotna had captured the hearts of fans when she famously sobbed on the shoulders of the Duchess of Kent during the 1993 presentation ceremony after being beaten by Steffi Graf.

On Saturday, it was Krejcikova who broke down in tears when she was shown her idol’s name on the honours board at the All England Club.

“The only thing that was going through my head was that I miss Jana a lot. It was just a very emotional moment to see my name on a board right next to her,” Krejcikova told reporters.

“I think she would be proud. I think she would be really excited that I’m on a same board as she is because Wimbledon was super special for her.”

In a final between two players whose styles are more suited to the slow claycourts of Roland Garros rather than slick grass at the All England Club, Krejcikova began in a menacing mood with some heavy hitting to dictate play.

She raced through the opening set on a sunlit Centre Court before the crowd roared on French Open runner-up Paolini to coax her into action. Agencies

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