07/09/26 10:49:00
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07/09 10:47 CDT Karolina Muchova ends Coco Gauff's run at Wimbledon in
drama-filled tiebreaker to reach the final
Karolina Muchova ends Coco Gauff's run at Wimbledon in drama-filled tiebreaker
to reach the final
By ANDREW DAMPF
AP Sports Writer
LONDON (AP) --- Karolina Muchova ended Coco Gauff's run at Wimbledon in a
drama-filled tiebreaker to reach the final on Thursday.
Muchova won 6-2, 1-6, 7-6 (10) to become the fourth Czech woman in the last six
years to reach the championship match of the grass-court Grand Slam.
"It was such a big fight," Muchova said. "It was a roller coaster."
Gauff wasted a match point in the tiebreaker when she dinked an attackable
forehand into the net to follow a powerful first serve.
Muchova then produced a lob winner to set up her first match point, which she
lost when she slipped to the grass and a passing shot from Gauff sailed by her.
But Muchova quickly set up another match point and produced a shot to the
corner. Gauff reached the ball but her forehand response landed in the net and
Muchova covered her hands in disbelief.
"You're up and down in 10 seconds. You have a match point, then match point
down. It's no time to think, but very nerve-wracking," Muchova said. "I'm
really kind of shaking and trying to sink it in."
It will be the ninth-ranked Muchova's second Grand Slam final after losing to
Iga Swiatek in the 2023 French Open championship match.
Muchova could face another Czech player in Saturday's final, with Linda Noskova
to play Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine in the other semifinal next on Centre Court.
The other Czech women in the Wimbledon final recently were: Karolina Pliskova
(runner-up in 2021); Marketa Vondrousova (champion in 2023); and Barbora
Krejcikova (champion in 2024).
For Gauff, it was still her most successful Wimbledon. Previously, the
seventh-ranked American had gone only as far as the fourth round three times --
including during her breakthrough run as a 15-year-old in 2019.
The men's semifinals on Friday feature top-ranked and defending champion Jannik
Sinner against seven-time Wimbledon winner Novak Djokovic and French Open
champion Alexander Zverev against British wild card Arthur Fery.
It was another hot day in London with the temperature soaring to 91 degrees
Fahreinheit (33 Celsius), prompting spectators to fan themselves in the stands
in an attempt to keep cool.
Muchova appeared to be struggling physically as the match wore on, bending over
in exhaustion after one long rally and holding her abdomen in apparent pain
during the final game.
"I'm OK," Muchova said. "I just was trying to catch a breath."
Muchova said she took a photo of Centre Court when she came to practice on the
famed lawn ahead of her first career match on the most revered court in tennis.
"There are so many of us tennis players and I don't think many of us get to
play on this court," she said. "It's just a nice moment to experience all of
this and this court is beautiful."
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
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