On the eve of the women’s Wimbledon final, the one thing nobody expected was a comprehensive blow-out. Eugenie Bouchard, the theory went, is just too game a competitor to allow that to happen, even if this was just her first Grand Slam final.
But Petra Kvitova begged to differ. It took the better part of three years for the 24-year-old Czech to return to the final of the tournament she won in 2011, but when she finally made it, she demonstrated that she’s got enough game to decimate all comers. Relying on a wicked, swerving lefty serve, a flat swing, and an explosive forehand, she attacked Bouchard without let-up and pummeled her in 55 minutes to win the title by the appalling score of 6-3, 6-0.
It will be a valuable learning experience for Bouchard, about whom nobody will be able to say that she got too much, too soon. And it was certainly a time of vindication for Kvitova.
As expected, Bouchard showed no real signs of being intimidated by the magnitude of this occasion. It isn’t just because she’d been to two previous Grand Slam semifinals this year; it’s more or less in her genes to meet even the most unnerving of challenges with equanimity.
Her opponent, well that’s been another story. Kvitova, seeded No. 6, has become less famous as a former Wimbledon champ than as an enigmatic and sometimes reluctant warrior, forever prey to bouts of anxiety and loss of form.
Not today, though.
Bouchard held serve to start, after which Kvitova’s first statement was a thunderous ace. She went on to hold with ease, and the pressure was back on the slender shoulders of the No. 13 seed. She started gamely enough, with an ace, and jumped to 30-love. Then Kvitova, showing the flair that would distinguish her day, ran off three points—two of them outright winners. That brought her to break point, but Bouchard held fast and forced a backhand error. Her safety was short-lived, though, as Kvitova’s sharp return forced an error. Kvitova converted her second break point with a cross-court forehand winner.
Kvitova survived three deuces in the next game to hold for 3-1, after which she faced her first—and only—crisis. Bouchard fell behind 15-40 on a double fault, but she fought off the two break chances. Kvitova would have two more break points in that game, but Bouchard dismissed them as well to hold for 2-3.