WATCH: Donna Vekic cries uncontrollably before losing to Jasmine Paolini in enthralling Wimbledon semifinal clash

Vekic was leading the set but couldn't capitalize much on it as a resilient Paolini forced the match into the decider.

WATCH: Donna Vekic cries uncontrollably before losing to Jasmine Paolini in enthralling Wimbledon semifinal clash

Donna Vekic lost to Jasmine Paolini at Wimbledon (Images via X, Imago)

Jasmine Paolini has made it to her second Grand Slam final of the year after a hard-fought win over Croatia’s unseeded Donna Vekic in the semifinal of Wimbledon they played on the Centre Court on Thursday (July 11). Paolini displayed her fighting spirit and snatched the game from Vekic with a scoreline of 2-6, 6-4, 7-6(10-8). 

Vekic was leading the set but couldn’t capitalize much on it as a resilient Paolini forced the match into the decider. Emotions ran high during the match as the Croat couldn’t believe she lost the second set and was unable to control her tears before the deciding tie-break.

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The victory made Paolini the first woman from Italy to reach the final of Wimbledon. She also became the first woman since Serena Williams in 2015 to advance to the Wimbledon and Roland Garros semifinals in the same season. 

Vekic’s seven aces compared to Paolini’s five went in vain and the former even committed seven double faults while the Italian committed just three. This was the second three-set match Paolini played at SW19, as she previously received a walkover from USA’s Madison Keys in the Round of 16 after scores of 6-3, 6-7(6-8), 5-5. Vekic, on the other hand, had to play four three-setters before making her maiden appearance in the Wimbledon semifinal.

Jasmine Paolini fought for every ball to reach the Wimbledon final for the first time

Jasmine Paolini couldn’t believe she is through to two back-to-back finals of a major event! Just a month ago, she came close to winning her first Grand Slam title at the French Open, but a dominant Iga Swiatek snatched it from her in easy straight sets 6-2, 6-1 to lift her fourth Roland Garros and her overall fifth Grand Slam title. Paolini would not want to let go of this opportunity of playing in the final.

Jasmine Paolini
Jasmine Paolini (Image via Imago)
There is no place better than here to fight for every ball. I really enjoy playing in front of you guys. Thank you for cheering for me. Grazie. These last few months have been crazy for me [reaching the French Open final too]. I’m just trying to focus on what I have to do on the court. I love playing tennis. It’s a dream. I watched the Wimbledon finals when I was a kid. 
Jasmine Paolini said after the match 

Paolini will face the winner of the second semifinal clash between Elena Rybakina and Barbora Krejcikova. Rybakina won the Wimbledon title in 2022 while Krejcikova is the 2021 French Open winner. 

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