London // Garbine Muguruza became the first Spanish woman in 19 years to reach the Wimbledon final on Thursday with a rollercoaster 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 win over Poland’s Agnieszka Radwanska.
The 21-year-old goes on to tackle world No 1 and five-time champion Serena Williams – who dumped Maria Sharapova in straight sets in the other semi-final – in the final on Saturday.
Aranxta Sanchez-Vicario was the last Spanish woman to make the final at the All England Club while Conchita Martinez was the last champion in 1994.
Muguruza had to endure some nervy moments before she secured her maiden Grand Slam final spot, seeing a 3-1 lead in the second disappear against the three-time semi-finalist.
Read more:
– Williams one win away from Serena Slam after coasting past Maria Sharapova in Wimbledon semi-finals
– Richard Gasquet storms into Wimbledon semi-finals and states: I’m the worst player left!
Muguruza, who has only one tour title to her name, then took victory with a power-packed flowing forehand, her 39th winner of the contest.
“I have worked all my life for this, I have no words,” said 20th seed Muguruza who will climb into the top 10 for the first time next week as a result of her performance at Wimbledon.
“It was a tough match. Agnieszka has so much experience but I just wanted to keep fighting.”
Muguruza said she expected her family to fly to London to see Saturday’s final having told them to stay away as not to jinx her progress.
“My mother, father and brother will come over -- I didn’t want them to come before in case things changed,” she said.
Muguruza said she was hoping for the best when the shot which took her to match point was called out -- possibly by a member of Radwanska’s team in the player’s box.
“I challenged. I was praying it was on the line.”
Muguruza will be the underdog in the final. She trails Williams 2-1 although she did defeat the American at the French Open last year.
The Spanish palyer, contesting her first Grand Slam semi-final after back-to-back runs to the French Open quarter-finals in 2014 and 2015, had enjoyed an impressive tournament.
She had knocked out fifth seed Caroline Wozniacki and 10th-seeded Angelique Kerber to make the last four.
Radwanska, the 2012 runner-up, hadn’t faced a player inside the top 20.
That battle-hardeed edge shone through on Centre Court as the 6ft (1.83m) Muguruza unleashed 12 winners to Radwanska’s four in the opening set.
Two breaks of serve in the first and fifth games gave her the opener in just 33 minutes with the Pole only managing to claim four points of the Spaniard’s serve.
Muguruza broke again in the opening game of the second set and it wasn’t until the sixth game that the 26-year-old Radwanska carved out and converted a first break point to level at 3-3.
Radwanska then raced through the second set, having collected five games on the trot.
That became six on the bounce with a break in the first game of the decider before the Spaniard stopped the rot with a break back for 1-1.
In a tense conclusion, Muguruza broke for 4-2, rediscovering the raw power of her earlier dominance and survived being called for two foot faults in the closing stages before she secured a famous win.
Paths to Saturday’s Wimbledon women’s singles final:
Serena Williams (USA x1) v Garbine Muguruza (ESP x20)
Williams
1st rd: bt Margarita Gaspariyan (RUS) 6-4, 6-1
2nd rd: bt Timea Babos (HUN) 6-4, 6-1
3rd rd: bt Heather Watson (GBR) 6-2, 4-6, 7-5
4th rd: bt Venus Williams (USA x16) 6-4, 6-3
QF: bt Victoria Azarenka (BLR x23) 3-6, 6-2, 6-3
SF: bt Maria Sharapova (RUS x4) 6-2, 6-4
Muguruza
1st rd: bt Varvara Lepchencko (USA) 6-4, 6-1
2nd rd: bt Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO) 6-3, 4-6, 6-2
3rd rd: bt Angelique Kerber (GER x10) 7-6 (14/12), 1-6, 6-2
4th rd: bt Caroline Wozniacki (DEN x5) 6-4, 6-4
QF: bt Timea Bacsinszky (SUI x15) 7-5, 6-3
SF: bt Agnieszka Radwanska (POL x13) 6-2, 3-6, 6-3
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Sustainable Development Goals
1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere
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10. Reduce inequality within and among countries
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12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its effects
14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
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Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Indoor cricket World Cup:
Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23
UAE fixtures:
Men
Saturday, September 16 – 1.45pm, v New Zealand
Sunday, September 17 – 10.30am, v Australia; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Monday, September 18 – 2pm, v England; 7.15pm, v India
Tuesday, September 19 – 12.15pm, v Singapore; 5.30pm, v Sri Lanka
Thursday, September 21 – 2pm v Malaysia
Friday, September 22 – 3.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 3pm, grand final
Women
Saturday, September 16 – 5.15pm, v Australia
Sunday, September 17 – 2pm, v South Africa; 7.15pm, v New Zealand
Monday, September 18 – 5.30pm, v England
Tuesday, September 19 – 10.30am, v New Zealand; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Thursday, September 21 – 12.15pm, v Australia
Friday, September 22 – 1.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 1pm, grand final
The specs
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Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
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Price, base: Dh5.1 million
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 800hp @ 7,100pm
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Hydrogen: Market potential
Hydrogen has an estimated $11 trillion market potential, according to Bank of America Securities and is expected to generate $2.5tn in direct revenues and $11tn of indirect infrastructure by 2050 as its production increases six-fold.
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