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A single-minded focus despite prior injuries allowed Czechia’s Karolina Muchova to end Coco Gauff’s incredible run in their Wimbledon semifinal with a thrilling three-set tie-break win over the American tennis player.
Gauff, who is yet to progress past the last four at Wimbledon, lived dangerously at the year’s third Grand Slam, but ۱۰th-seeded Muchova came out on top after saving a match point in the third-set tie-breaker to topple the seventh seed in a nerve-shredding ۶-۲, ۱-۶, ۷-۶ (۱۲-۱۰) result.
Muchova, who has undergone multiple surgeries recently, went hurtling towards the turf after she conjured up a show-stopping dive volley to catch Gauff off guard but never lost sight of the ball.
For a place in the Wimbledon final, Muchova was ready to put her body on the line, bruises and all.
All-Czech final
With compatriot Linda Noskova beating Marta Kostyuk in Thursday’s second semi, the duo set up an all-Czech women’s final at a Grand Slam for the first time.
It also meant that for the third time in four years, a Czech will hold aloft the Venus Rosewater Dish, after the triumphs of Marketa Vondrousova in ۲۰۲۳ and Barbora Krejcikova in ۲۰۲۴.
All those dreams were on the verge of vanishing within a blink of an eye for Muchova when Gauff stood at match point at ۹-۸ in the tie-break, but the American left the spellbound crowd gasping as she produced a howler.
Hesitating for a fraction of a second, her attempt at a dropshot ended with the ball being dumped into the net.
Rollercoaster tie-break to decide match
Muchova was among those who could scarcely believe the drama unfolding during an electrifying tie-break where she had surged to a ۴-۱ lead, extended that to ۶-۳, before Gauff defied logic to reach match point first.
But as Gauff discovered, the gulf between reaching match point and converting match point is as wide as the Atlantic Ocean.
“It sounds really nice to be in the final. It was such a big fight. It was a rollercoaster; you’re up and down,” a beaming Muchova, still trying to catch her breath, told the crowd.
“In ۱۰ seconds, you have a match point, then you’re match point down. There’s no time to think, but very nerve-racking. I don’t even know what I’m saying.
“I’m really shaking and trying to let it sink in, but the atmosphere here – indescribable.”
When the duo last met in the semifinal of a major at the ۲۰۲۳ US Open, climate protesters, including one who glued their feet to the cement floor of the stands, disrupted play for almost ۵۰ minutes.
At least this time, it was the players creating all the excitement.
Furnace on Centre Court
No one would have guessed that Muchova is allergic to grass, and requires “a lot of pills, sprays, eyedrops” just to step onto the most famous patch of turf in tennis.
While spectators struggled to stay cool in the furnace-like atmosphere on Centre Court, Muchova’s pick-and-mix variety of grass-court craft shone brightly as she broke Gauff in the third and fifth games, with the American surrendering her serve for the second time by wildly misfiring a forehand into the back hoardings.
A ۱۷۹km/h (۱۱۱mph) ace sealed the set for Muchova and put her within touching distance of a first Wimbledon final.
However, no one can accuse Gauff of holding up the white flag when the going gets tough, or even taking the easy route, as she survived four successive three-setters to reach the semis – and once again, she was ready to go the distance.
Gauff knows she got close
After failing to convert any of her first eight break-point opportunities, the American finally got the breakthrough on her ninth to take a ۳-۱ lead.
Another break for ۵-۱ sent her mother into raptures in the player’s box, and one game later, it was all level.
After two one-sided sets, both protagonists displayed their incredible ball-striking ability, producing ferocious forehands and breathtaking backhands, as they went toe-to-toe in a captivating decider.
Gauff had two chances to break for a ۵-۴ lead, but once Muchova used her get-out-of-jail-free card to wriggle out of that spot of bother, there was no stopping her.
She produced all the goods in the match tie-break, including the outrageous diving volley winner, and also lobbed Gauff to earn her first match point.
While that one went begging, she made no mistake on the second, and held her arms aloft in victory after watching the American dump a forehand into the net to end the ۲-hour, ۳۵-minute spectacle.
“Obviously got super close. Definitely going to think about the second, third, last point, whatever. A match for sure to remember. It’s tough to digest. I left it all out there,” summed up Gauff.
Gauff expecting hate messages after loss
The ۲۲-year-old said she was expecting to receive hate messages online after missing the match point against Muchova.
“I’ll be online. Probably already got some hate comments and stuff. It’s OK. Just makes you stronger,” said Gauff, a two-time Grand Slam champion.
“Bettors who lose, who are mad and stuff. It’s the usual. It sucks, but it’s like, whatever.
“I’ll come on the winning end next time, and I’ll be sure to tag them.”
Several players in recent years have spoken out about hateful messages on social media, including death threats.
In January ۲۰۲۴, tennis’s governing bodies launched an AI tool called the “Threat Matrix” to monitor social media abuse of players.
The WTA and ITF later said that analysts had verified approximately ۸,۰۰۰ messages as “abusive, violent or threatening” in ۲۰۲۴, highlighting “angry gamblers increasingly targeting players”.
