Barbora Krejčíková very nearly didn’t win the French Open. In fact, she very nearly failed to advance to the women’s singles final. In the run-up to her fourth and final date of the fortnight at Court Philippe Chatrier, she had to claw through three hard-fight sets that went 16 games in the clincher. And that’s not all; she endured five more points than necessary to upend gritty 17th-seed Maria Sakkari. Victory was seemingly assured when the latter’s forehand on match point went long; after she raised her hands in triumph, however, chair umpire Pierre Bacchi ruled the ball in and called for a replay of the point.
To be sure, Krejčíková would clinch her date with destiny on her own — with a backhand winner following the same number of live-ball situations it would take to win a game at love. And, needless to say, her poise and confidence enabled her to overcome a potentially deflating moment. As she argued, “At that moment, I was like, ‘Well, it’s out.’ But what can you do?” The answer was clear: She did the only thing she could. She played on, with a degree of self-assurance that belied her unseeded status and underscored the underpinnings of her success.
Krejčíková would require another three sets to finally wrap her arms around the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen. And, perhaps fittingly, she did so while awaiting the verdict on a backhand by Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova that looked to have sailed long. After a moment’s hesitation, she confirmed the result, and her place in history as the third unseeded French Open champion since 2017 is secure. Notably, her 29-year-old opponent went through a record 51 prior major appearances before securing a spot in the final.
In retrospect, Krejčíková earned the title as any other player could — by beating the competition placed before her. Never mind that World Number One Ashleigh Barty was felled by injury in the middle of a second-round set-to. Never mind that second-seed and four-time major champion Naomi Osaka saw fit to withdraw from the tournament after the first round due to mental health issues. And never mind that all-time-great Serena Williams crashed out of the fourth round. As far as she’s concerned, she triumphed on the strength of her skill and conviction. She refused to be faxed by circumstance, and, in response, circumstance rewarded her accordingly.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.
