Germany’s Tatjana Maria continued her dream Wimbledon run when she fought from a set down and saved two match points to beat former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko 5-7 7-5 7-5 on Sunday and reach the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam for the first time.
Magical moment for Maria 💫
After returning from maternity leave less than a year ago, Tatjana Maria reaches her first Grand Slam QF#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/dCv8QXelTY
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 3, 2022
Maria, at 34 the oldest player left in the women’s draw, had impressed in her stunning straight sets-victory over fifth seed Maria Sakkari in the previous round and she hit back from 1-4 down in the next set before forcing a decider.
Having saved two match points in the second set at 4-5 and with the crowd firmly behind her, Maria capitalised on a mistake from 12th seed Ostapenko to go up 6-5 in a see-saw third set before sealing the match on serve.
Maria said the boisterous support on Court One gave her the belief she needed towards the end of the contest.
“Oh my God, there are no words for this amazing crowd. Even when I was 4-5 down in the third set they were behind me,” she added. “I said, ‘Okay they believe in me so I believe in me’.”
It was the biggest career victory for the mother of two who returned to action from maternity leave just under a year ago and she will play Jule Niemeier in the quarter-finals.
"The best thing in the world"@Maria_Tatjana talks about her pride of being a mum ❤️#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/mfLANQ9Lns
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 3, 2022
“It makes me so proud to be a mum, that’s the best feeling in the world,” she said in an on-court interview.
“I love my two kids… to be able to do this together… It makes it really special.”
Topics
Wimbledon Tatjana Maria Tennis Sports Kolkata
Bengali