Barty beats Kerber in semis, to face Pliskova for title
LONDON (Reuters) – Top seed Ash Barty became the first Australian woman to reach the Wimbledon singles final in 41 years after beating former champion Angelique Kerber 6-3, 7-6(3) on Thursday.
The 25-year-old will now aim to emulate Evonne Goolagong who won the second of her two Wimbledon crowns in 1980.
After saving a break point in a nervy opening game on a sunny Centre Court, world No. 1 Barty was supreme in the first set as her all-court game flowed on the grass.
The 33-year-old Kerber used all her experience on the surface to hit back in the second set and looked poised to take it into a decider when serving at 5-3.
But Barty got back in the groove and broke to love.
Kerber’s game went off in the tiebreak and Barty surged into a 6-0 lead and despite missing out on three match points she was never going to let her opportunity slip.
A netted backhand from Kerber sent Barty through to her second Grand Slam final, having won the French Open in 2019.
She will face Karolina Pliskova in Saturday’s showpiece – the first time since 1977 that both finalists are in their maiden Wimbledon final.
Former Wimbledon junior champion Barty was forced to pull out of the French Open because of a hip injury that needed intensive rehab in the buildup to the Championships.
After a tricky start when she lost a set against Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro in the first round, Barty has warmed to the task of following in the footsteps of Goolagong on the 50th anniversary of her first Wimbledon title.
And she took it up another level against former world No. 1 Kerber who has returned to form after a slump.
“This is incredible, this is close to as good a tennis match as I will ever play,” Barty, who like trailblazer Goolagong is proud of her indigenous Australian heritage.
“Angie brought the best out of me today and it was a hell of a match right from the first ball and I knew I would have to play that well just to compete. Very proud of myself and my team and now we get a chance to win the childhood dream.”
In the late match, former world No. 1 Pliskova reached her maiden Wimbledon final after coming back from a set down to beat second seed Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus 5-7, 6-4, 6-4.
The Czech goes into Saturday’s final looking to capture her first Grand Slam title, having only ever reached one other final when she finished runner-up to Kerber at the 2016 US Open.
The 29-year-old Pliskova found it hard going against Sabalenka, the first seeded player she had faced in this year’s tournament, and it showed as she dropped her first set on the only break point she faced with a double fault.
She made inroads on Sabalenka’s booming serve, which reached speeds of 193 kilometers per hour, to clinch a break to love midway through the second set from which she served out to level the match.
The 23-year-old Sabalenka, playing in her first major semifinal, struggled for consistency, sending down 18 aces in the match but making 20 unforced errors including one to give up an early break in the first game of the deciding set.
Although the Belarusian rallied, Pliskova never looked in any danger, rarely breaking a sweat on her own serve as she booked her place in Saturday’s showpiece with an ace.
“I am in the final so I think it is incredible,” Pliskova said on court. “It was an amazing match from both of us, I got a bit frustrated but she was serving unbelievably – she was in a semifinal so had to play some great tennis. I am supper happy I managed to find a way to win.”
That will to win meant the Czech became the first player in 10 years in the women’s semifinals to recover from going a set down to win the match.
“It is difficult when you are not doing well to stay positive, but my team is super positive, thanks to them I managed to stay calm and trust in my game,” she added. “I have had success in the past so it is not like I forgot how to play tennis.”
On TV: Wimbledon late-round action (live on Sport5 from 3 p.m. throughout weekend).