Elena Rybakina has won the women’s title at Wimbledon by beating Ons Jabeur 3-6, 6-2, 6-2. Rybakina is the first player representing Kazakhstan to win a Grand Slam singles title. She was born in Russia but switched nationalities in 2018. The 17th-seeded Rybakina dropped only two sets in her seven victories at the All England Club. Rybakina, who turned 23 last month, is the youngest woman to win the Wimbledon title since a 21-year-old Petra Kvitova in 2011.  Both competing in the biggest match of their lives, the first Grand Slam final appearance for them and their respective countries, the strange match reflected their lack of experience in this moment and showed in the final tally.

Rybakina lost her serve early in the first set as Jabeur took a 3-1 lead and went on to a dominant 6-3 win. Jabeur is the first female player from the Arab world to reach this stage in a Grand Slam competition and though she started well, Rybakina was too good for her on Saturday. Rybakina found her rhythm in the second set and dominated the match thereafter, negating Jabeur’s dogged style of play that involves mixing powerful groundstrokes with well-disguised drop shots, with big serves and brilliant net play. The 23-year-old Moscow-born Rybakina broke Jabeur early in the second set, and then got the better of her rival’s serve once again to take the match into a decider.