Wimbledon 2013: Bartoli beats Lisicki to win her maiden Grand Slam

Mangalore Today News Network

London, July 06, 2013: Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli romped to an emotional first grand slam victory on Saturday, the 15th seed thrashing an overwhelmed Sabine Lisicki 6-1 6-4 in the Wimbledon final.

Bartoli, 28, became the fifth oldest woman to become a first-time grand slam winner in the Open tennis era and the first player from outside the top 10 to win a major since Venus Williams in 2007.

 

Six years after losing to Williams in the final at the All England Club, Bartoli returned to Centre Court to end her long wait for a major crown. "As a little girl I dreamed about this moment for so long and I was there in 2007 and I missed it, so I know how it feels," said Bartoli.

Bartoli needed only 81 minutes to rout 23rd-seeded German Lisicki, who broke down in tears as the match slipped away in the second set.

Lisicki, who had upset top seed Serena Williams en route to the final, threatened to stage a late comeback to ultimately took too long to overcome her nerves. "I think I was just overwhelmed by this whole situation," a tearful Lisicki said. "Credit to Marion, she’s been in that situation before and she handled it perfectly."

By finally winning her maiden major title in the 47th grand slam appearance of her career, Bartoli surpassed the previous record set by Jana Novotna, who won Wimbledon in 1998 after 45 appearances at the majors.

Bartoli, who will climb to seventh when the latest world rankings are released on Monday, didn’t drop a set in her seven matches and is the first Frenchwoman to win a grand slam singles title since Amelie Mauresmo at Wimbledon in 2006.

Mauresmo has played a key role in Bartoli’s remarkable renaissance over the past two weeks.

Bartoli’s career had been on a downward spiral in recent years and she hit rock bottom in February when she struggled with the emotional decision to move on from her dad Walter, who had coached her since childhood.

She eventually turned to Mauresmo after failing to achieve rapport with a series of coaches.Bartoli’s father was in her support box for the final and the pair embraced after the victory. Bartoli shook off some early anxiety of her own and took advantage of Lisicki’s nerves to race to a 3-1 lead and ran away with the opening set.

The German finally held serve for the first time in the match when she returned to start the second set. She then mounted her only serious threat to Bartoli’s dominance, earning four break points in the second game, only to see the Frenchwoman come up with a series of blistering winners.

Bartoli had scented Lisicki’s discomfort and landed the decisive blow with a break to move 2-1 ahead. Lisicki’s smile and all-action style had made her the darling of the Centre Court crowd this year, but this was a miserable end to her fairytale run and she was in tears when she served at 3-1 down.

Bartoli showed no mercy, breaking again as she took a 5-1 lead. With the title within touching distance, tension crept into Bartoli’s game as she lost three straight games before recovering to secure the biggest win of her life with an ace.

"For me finishing with an ace to win Wimbledon, even in my wildest dreams I couldn’t imagine that," Bartoli said.

The win also capped an eventful two months for Frenchman Thomas Drouet, the former hitting partner of Australian Bernard Tomic. Drouet began working with Bartoli after serving ties with the Tomic camp following an altercation with Bernard’s father and coach John during the Madrid Masters.