Wairarapa Times-Age E-Edition

New name will be on Lenglen trophy

The ball landing at Barbora Krejcikova’s feet on match point appeared to come down behind the baseline.

The linesman thought so and called the shot long. A TV replay confirmed as much, and the unseeded Krejcikova was so sure she raised her arms in triumph to celebrate a berth in her first Grand Slam final at the French Open.

Chair umpire Pierre Bacchi disagreed. He reversed the call, sparking a fresh round of debate about video replay and briefly delaying Krejcikova’s victory.

Tennis was spared an unjust result five points later, when she hit a backhand winner to close out the biggest victory of her career.

The Czech saved a match point midway through the final set and outlasted 17th-seeded Maria Sakkari of Greece, 7-5 4-6 9-7.

“I always wanted to play matches like this,” Krejcikova said.

She must like roller coasters, too. Her opponent tomorrow will be 29-year-old Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who also advanced to her first major final by beating unseeded Tamara Zidansek, 7-5 6-3.

It was only the second time in the professional era that there were four firsttime Grand Slam women semifinalists at a major tournament, and the first time since the 1978 Australian Open.

The men’s semifinals today include a showdown between 13-time champion Rafael Nadal and 2016 winner Novak Djokovic.

It’s their 58th meeting, and a rematch of last year’s Roland Garros final. The other semifinal will match No.5 Stefanos Tsitsipas against No.6 Alexander Zverev, and one of them will have a shot on Monday at his first Grand Slam title.

Krejcikova, a two-time major doubles champion ranked 33rd, is playing singles in the main draw of a major tournament for just the fifth time. The 31st-seeded Pavlyuchenkova, by contrast, has played in more majors before reaching a final — 52 — than any other woman.

“I wanted this so much that right now I don’t feel anything,” Pavlyuchenkova told the crowd in French.

Krejcikova’s run to equally improbable.

“It sounds incredible,” she said. “I cannot believe it. It’s actually happening.”

It seemed especially unlikely nine games into the third set, when Sakkari held a match point. She confessed she then became less aggressive.

“I got stressed, starting thinking that I’m a point away from being in the final,” she said. “I guess it’s a rookie mistake.”

Krejcikova erased the match point with a swinging volley for a nervy winner, and 40 minutes later they were still playing.

Then came the real drama. With Krejcikova holding a match point in the final game, Sakkari hit a forehand near the baseline. Bacchi climbed off his chair, took a look, called the shot good and ordered the point replayed.

“He came and he’s like, ‘It’s in,’ and I’m like, ‘No, no, no, no, no, no. Why?’” she said with a chuckle. “But what can I do? I cannot change his decision. It’s fine; let’s go. Let’s try to just win the next one.”

A TV replay indicated the ball was clearly long, but video review isn’t used at Roland Garros, where the balls usually leave clear marks in the clay.

Krejcikova kept her cool and was celebrating for good moments later after converting her fifth match point. – the final is

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2021-06-12T07:00:00.0000000Z

2021-06-12T07:00:00.0000000Z

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