What to expect in Wimbledon women's singles finals
More than three weeks of intense competition will culminate with the Wimbledon singles finals this weekend.
In the women's final Saturday, Marketa Vondrousova of Czechia will play Ons Jabeur of Tunisia. (Men's finalists Carlos Alcaraz of Spain and Novak Djokovic of Serbia will play Sunday.)
Here's how the women made it to the finals and what we can expect.
Marketa Vondrousova
Perhaps the most unlikely finalist of the four, the 24-year-old entered Wimbledon unseeded and ranked 42nd in the world. She enjoyed a stellar junior career, culminating in a French Open final in 2019, but injuries and poor performances kept her away from Grand Slam finals until her remarkable Wimbledon run.
"I've been through it," Vondrousova said of her journey. "Once I was very young, so I think it was just too much for me back then."
Watching Vondrousova at Wimbledon this year, you'd never guess that she struggled — or that grass courts aren't her specialty. She cruised through her first few victories in straight sets before beating her countrywoman Marie Bouzkova in a close round-of-16 matchup. But her greatest performance came in the semifinals against Ukrainian Elina Svitolina.
Vondrousova is a creative athlete known for her wild, unexpected attacks. She's left-handed — something of a rarity at the top level — and she's become quite good at defeating unsuspecting top seeds.
Ons Jabeur
Jabeur, meanwhile, had a slightly less positive journey to the final. She nearly lost in the semifinals to Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus and credited her sports psychologist for her hard-fought victory.
"I'm very proud of myself," Jabeur told the Associated Press (h/t ESPN) after the match. "Because maybe old me would've lost the match today and gone home already."
Jabeur, 28, is no stranger to Grand Slam finals; she played in the final game at both Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in 2022, enough to skyrocket her to second in the world rankings. Unfortunately, though, Jabeur lost both — Wimbledon to Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan and the U.S. Open to Iga Swiatek of Poland.
Jabeur hopes a Wimbledon title will ease the sting of those defeats, but she'll also want it for history's sake. She's already the only African or Arab player in history to make a major tournament final.
Jabeur's style is physical and demanding, leading some to call her a "magician" on the court. She's a big fan of slices and drop shots because they make her opponent work hard — and that matters, especially in venues like Wimbledon, where taller, lankier athletes tend to succeed. (Jabeur is just 5-foot-6.)
Jabeur is carrying the weight of history into the Wimbledon final, but despite it all, her mindset has never been stronger.
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