Wimbledon 2023: Vondrousova and Jabeur final to be decided by guile not power

By James Toney at Wimbledon

Marketa Vondrousova feared she'd be another name added to the long list of tennis players who seemingly had too much, too young.

The sport's history has plenty of star names who burned brightly but briefly in the firmament - a bold headline one day, a skinny sidebar the next.

Sport can be so cruel and surely success as a teenager is better than no success at all?

No wonder Emma Raducanu admits there are times when she 'wishes she never won the US Open'. Nearly two years and six coaches later, absent from Wimbledon with another injury, she'll surely empathise with Vondrousova's story of soaring highs and plummeting lows.

Vondrousova, 24, was a precocious talent from the age of four, a former junior world number one, winning tournaments around the world before becoming a teenager.

She claimed her maiden WTA Tour title in Switzerland four years later and made her first Grand Slam final, without dropping a set, before she turned 20, the first teenage major finalist in nearly a decade.

However, multiple injuries to her left wrist have left that promise currently unfulfilled, something she'll hope to change in Saturday's women's final with Tunisia's Ons Jabeur.

Jabeur lost in two Grand Slam finals last year, at Wimbledon and then a few weeks later at the US Open.

Vondrousova had reached just one in her career before this, though she's clearly a lover of the big occasion, in addition to that Roland Garros loss, she was defeated in the Olympic final in Tokyo.

"My contract with Nike finished last year and they decided not to renew after four years," said Vondrousova, who is seeking to become the first unseeded woman to win at Wimbledon.

"I don't know what's going to happen now but hopefully something nice.

"It's been tough, I've had two surgeries on my wrist and it's not always easy or possible to come back from injuries like that. To be honest, I was just grateful to be playing without any pain.

"This time last year my wrist was in a cast and that makes you appreciate moments like this.

"Tough moments can help you and I'm a different person. I'm just very happy to be playing at this level again. I didn't really expect it, it's crazy."

This is Vondrousova's fifth appearance at Wimbledon and before this fortnight she'd won just one match.

She's dropped just two sets on her path to the final, her toughest match a come from behind win over fellow Czech Marie Bouzkova in the fourth round.

Little surprise her biggest worry has been finding a cat sitter for Frankie, so her husband Stepan could fly in for the final.

"He's coming with my sister, we finally found someone to look after the cat," she joked.

This may not be the final fans predicted or wanted but it's rather lovely throwback to another time, when tennis was more about touch and guile than power and precision.

This Wimbledon was expected to be at the mercy of big-serving power players Aryna Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina and Iga Swiatek, only for each to stutter when it mattered.

Vondrousova and Jabeur have more layers to their game, making this more of a purist’s encounter, perhaps more worthy of this grand old stage.

They've played six times, with the ledger even on three wins apiece, the Tunisian winning their only encounter on grass in straight sets in Eastbourne two years ago.

Jabeur has more variations to her game than Heinz, her backhand drop shot is such a work of art they should hang in the Wimbledon museum. She hit 28 winners in her semi-final win over Sabalenka, arguably in 28 different ways.

The more difficult the shot, the more likely she is to go for it - a bit like a Seve Ballesteros eagle down the 18th via the woods, the rough and the bunker.

She promised she'd be back after last year's final defeat to Rybakina but there is a big difference between saying it and doing it.

The last player to graduate from runner-up to champion in a 12-month period was Serena Williams, who turned defeat to sister Venus in 2008 into victory over her in 2009.

It's hard not to like Jabeur, who has beaten four Grand Slam champions in a row to reach this final, coming from a set down on three occasions.

Players love to call themselves 'fighters', she actually is.

"I'm going for my revenge, I didn't win against her this year," she said.

"I will try to focus on myself but I'm not sure how she's going to play a second Grand Slam final. We are both hungry to win and it'll be whoever deserves it.

"I will try to focus on myself a lot. I'm not sure how she's going to play second Grand Slam final, I believe. We both hungry to win. Whoever deserve it more will win.

"For me there is one goal: I'm going for it. I will prepare 100%. Hopefully, I can make history not just for Tunisia, but for Africa.

"I think it'll be whoever can handle the emotions that will win. My team always tell me - be patient, don't worry, it's going to happen, it's going to come."