Tennis - Wimbledon - All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London, Britain - July 11, 2024 Italy's Jasmine Paolini celebrates winning her semi final match against Croatia's Donna Vekic REUTERS/Hannah Mckay Tennis - Wimbledon - All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London, Britain - July 11, 2024 Czech Republic's Barbora Krejcikova celebrates winning her semi final match against Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina REUTERS/Hannah Mckay LONDON - Barbora Krejcikova returned to a Grand Slam singles final three years after her only triumph with a stirring Wimbledon comeback on Thursday that set up a meeting with Italian Jasmine Paolini, who continued to break new ground at the All England Club. Despite a wealth of major doubles success, Krejcikova came into the contest with 2022 champion Elena Rybakina as the lower-seeded underdog but she kept a cool head after a sluggish start against the big-hitting Kazakh to prevail 3-6 6-3 6-4. Seventh seed Paolini earlier became the first Italian woman to reach the final after overcoming Croatian Donna Vekic 2-6 6-4 7-6(8) in a thriller, continuing her extraordinary year after last month's French Open runner-up finish.
The results ensured that there will be a different women's champion at the grasscourt major for an eighth straight year and a first-time winner. Former French Open winner Krejcikova also joined an elite group as the seventh Czech-born woman to make a Wimbledon final in the professional era that began in 1968. She emulated Hana M.