It was a big weekend for sport fans across the globe, with France clinching a thrilling World Cup victory and Wimbledon 2018 wrapping up a similarly riveting tournament.
From shocking upsets to marathon matches, disappointing performances to heartwarming comeback stories, Hong Kong tennis fans got to see a bit of everything.
Let’s take a closer look at the winners.
GENTLEMEN’S SINGLES – NOVAK DJOKOVIC
One of the greatest tennis players of all time, Novak Djokovic won the gentlemen’s singles championship, defeating Kevin Anderson in straight sets to claim his fourth victory at Wimbledon.
With the win, the former number 1 ranked tennis player vaulted back into the top 10. With his 2016 victory at the French Open, Djokovic became just the 8th player to complete a Grand Slam.
Though 2017 represented a rough patch in his career, Djokovic has previously won 13 grand slam singles titles, and, at just 30 years old, appears to be on track to add to his trophy case moving forward.
Djokovic deserves all the credit in the world, but his opponent Kevin Anderson also had a tournament for the ages. He earned a hard-fought victory against Federer in the quarter finals, snapping one of the longest streaks in Wimbledon history in the process. To follow that, he defeated John Isner in the second longest Wimbledon match of all time in the semifinals, before finally falling to Djokovic.
LADIES’ SINGLES – ANGELIQUE KERBER
A three-time majors winner and former world number 1, Angelique Kerber of Germany faced one of the game’s greatest stars in Serena Williams and emerged victorious. Kerber is now just the second woman to have defeated Serena Williams twice in Grand Slam finals (the first to accomplish the feat was Serena’s sister Venus).
Although the more famous comeback occurred on the other side, as the 23-time champion Serena Williams battled back from pregnancy, Kerber has a redemption story of her own.
After bursting onto the scene in 2016, winning the Australian Open and US Open and ascending to top rank, Kerber had a remarkably poor 2017. She failed to win a title, or even defeat a top 30 opponent before September.
Speaking post-match, Kerber had the following to say:
“I think without 2017 I couldn’t win this tournament. I think I learned a lot from last year, with all the expectations and all the things I go through. I learned so many things about myself. I try to enjoy every moment now.”
Some great advice on perseverance for young Kong Kong tennis players, as Kerber has re-emerged on the scene as Wimbledon champion, ranked 4th overall, and is only a French Open victory away from the Grand Slam.
DOUBLES WINNERS
Gentlemen’s Doubles: Mike Bryan (USA) & Jack Sock (USA)
Ladies’ Doubles: Barbora Krejčíková (CZE) & Kateřina Siniaková (CZE)
Mixed Doubles: Alexander Peya (AUT) & Nicole Melichar (CZE)
In the future, we would like to see more Hong Kong tennis representatives competing in these elite tournaments, but outside of that, this was truly one for the ages.
What were some of your favourite moments? Let us know in the comments.
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