Barbora Krejcikov claims her first Grand Slam singles title

When Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova’s final forehand sailed long, Czech Republic's Barbora Krejcikova won the French Open with a 6-1, 2-6, 6-4 victory. An unanticipated victory, Krejcikova looked up at the sky and thanked her late coach and mentor, 1998 Wimbledon champion Jana Novotna.

French Open 2021 will forever be remembered for its ceaseless surprises. We saw plenty of unseeded players, including Krejcikova, top player Naomi Osaka withdrawing after saying she had "suffered long bouts of depression" since winning her first Grand Slam title at the US Open in 2018 and world no.1 Novak Djokovic four-sets victory against world no.3 Rafael Nadal at the semi-finals.

Krejcikova’s game is often noted to be filled with off-speed forehands and sliced backhands and her service returns tend to be looping backhands. She generally displays limited power and an approach that seems non-conforming with the smash-mouth style that so many women bring to the court today.

Reflecting on her interview from before the match, Krejcikova seemed very uncertain of whether she could win the French Open trophy. “I mean, I never imagined that I’m going to be, actually, a Grand Slam finalist. I don’t know. I don’t know. It sounds, I mean, incredible,” she said, pausing between words. “But it just sounds (like) I can’t believe it. I cannot believe it. Yeah, I cannot believe it — it’s happening. I cannot believe it.”

Krejcikova was grateful to a lot of people, including her friends and family, however, above all, thanked Novotna, who gave her strength and inspiration since the day she knocked on her door as a teenager seeking help with her tennis. “Pretty much her last words to me were, ‘Just enjoy and just try to go win a Grand Slam,’” Krejcikova told the crowd during her on-court interview, recalling the times she spent with Novotna as she lost her battle with cancer at age 49 in 2017. “I know somewhere, she is looking out for me. This happened pretty much because she is looking out for me.”

Of course, Krejcikova’s victory will be life-changing, as will Pavlyuchenkova’s success in reaching her first Grand Slam final one month shy of her 30th birthday. However, subjectively speaking, the woman with the biggest impact at the 2021 French Open has to be Naomi Osaka, whose stance started a crucial conversation on athletes’ mental health.

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