Vondrousova highlights 'amazing' Raducanu influence after brutal Nike snub

16 July 2023 , 21:30

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Marketa Vondrousova is the new Wimbledon champion (Image: Getty Images)

Marketa Vondrousova reckons she and Emma Raducanu have shown in the last 19 months that the sky is the limit for anyone in women's tennis.

Czech ace Vondrousova became the first unseeded player to lift the Venus Rosewater Dish on Saturday when she beat Ons Jabeur 6-4, 6-4. While Raducanu was the first qualifier to win the US Open when she triumphed in New York in September 2021.

‌Asked if her and Raducanu's endeavours showed anything is possible, Vondrousova said: "Yes. I feel like everybody is playing such great tennis that it doesn’t matter whether you are 70 or 20, anyone can beat anyone. Every match here was very tough and I don’t think it depends if it’s top 10 or someone who is 90, it’s very tough."

‌Ironically, Raducanu was the last person to beat Vondrousova in SW19, winning their second-round match in 2021. The Brit defeated Vitalia Diatchenko, Vondrousova and Sorana Cirstea in a surprise run to the fourth round, eventually losing to Ajla Tomljanovic.

Vondrousova added: "She was a wildcard here and was playing amazing. I was, like, ‘It’s not possible that she’s not going to be at the top soon’, and then she won the US Open. For me, it was still my best result here - the second round.

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"I told myself before the tournament, ‘Just give it a shot, just try to win a couple of matches’, and now I’ve won the whole tournament. It’s crazy."

Emma Raducanu defeated Vondrousova at Wimbledon two years ago (Getty Images)

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Vondrousova was dumped by sponsors Nike a year ago as she battled injury and she admits the snub helped fuel her through the Championships. She said: "The contract ended last year and I didn’t play for six months.

‌"I was a bit sad when it finished but I was like, ‘We’re going to try to find something else, just show them I’m going to be good, I’m going to play good and we’ll see what happens now’. But I also feel like maybe that’s a good thing that drove me here."

Her win sees her join an illustrious list of Czech-born winners, including Martina Navratilova, Petra Kvitova and Jana Novotna, and there are eight Czech players in the top 50.

Vondrousova added: "It’s maybe the Czech personality. I don’t really know, we practice in different clubs, we are not even together, so maybe there is something about Czechs. I practiced with Petra before the tournament and she was playing so well.

‌"I was, like, ‘Oh my God, she is still so good’. Czech has a great history here in Wimbledon. I saw Martina and Helena Sukova in my box, Jan Kodes also, so it’s crazy that I am a champion here also now."

Vondrousova will now be looking forward to the next Grand Slam, the US Open, which starts at the end of August. Raducanu has returned to training after undergoing hand and ankle surgery, although it's unclear if she'll be fit in time for the US Open.

Tom Hopkinson