Jasmine Paolini defeated Rebecca Sramkova 6-2, 6-1 in the second singles rubber to complete a 2-0 victory over Slovakia in the final on Wednesday, showcasing her tennis prowess and leading Italy to their fifth Billie Jean King Cup victory.
A year after Italy’s devastating loss to Canada in the final and more than ten years after their last championship in 2013, the vibrant Paolini destroyed Sramkova before a wild celebration with her teammates and enthusiastic Italian supporters, including men’s world number one Jannik Sinner.
For a player who began the season ranked No. 30 and never advanced past the third round of a major, this is an incredible season.
After Lucia Bronzetti defeated Viktoria Hruncakova 6-2, 6-4 in the opening match, Paolini defeated Sramkova, giving the Italians an overwhelming victory. As a result, there were no doubles in the final.
Paolini expressed her emotions on the court and said: “It’s unbelievable, amazing. I don’t have words to describe how I feel right now; it’s just incredible. I think we played an unbelievable week, and I’m so proud of how we did it in every match. I’m very happy that this year we finally were able to bring the title back to Italy. Today, when I stepped on the court, I told myself that I was going to give 100%. If you win, you win. But if you lose, you have to accept that. We are going to fight for every ball, and today it went well for us.”
Jasmine Paolini in 2024
At the moment ranked no.4 (career-high), the Italian played her last match on the 20th of November when she beat world no.43 Rebecca Sramkova 6-2 6-1 in the Rubber 2 in (draw).
Currently, during this season Paolini has managed to achieve an overall 42-21 win-loss record. Paolini conquered 1 title in Dubai. Jasmine was the runner-up at the French Open and Wimbledon.
Jasmine Paolini will come up against the world no.115 Oceane Dodin in the . Their head to head is 1-0 for Paolini.
The Italian clinched 1 title in 2024 in Dubai. The Italian was the finalist at the French Open and in Wimbledon.
Jasmine Paolini |
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