Conchita Martínez has had cause to jump out of her seat a few times over the past fortnight as Garbiñe Muguruza has swung through every shade of inconsistency and brilliance to reach Saturday’s final against the young American, Sofia Kenin.
Martínez, who won Wimbledon in 1994 by beating Martina Navratilova, and reached the final here four years later, has joined her Spanish compatriot full-time this year after guiding her to the Wimbledon title three years ago, and has been in turn delighted and occasionally exasperated, showing her emotions from the players’ box in a string of tight rallies, especially in the semi-final against the world No 3 Simona Halep.
Muguruza, who arrived without a seeding and nursing the remnants of a virus, did not figure in any pre-tournament discussions and worked her way through the draw almost unnoticed until she engaged Halep in a semi-final of non-stop screaming and muscular exchanges in the semi-finals, beating the former world No 1 7-6 (8), 7-5.
Martínez, who has also been inducted into the sport’s hall of fame, said on Friday: “So far so good. I can’t complain.” She said of Muguruza, who also has won the French Open and knows about the pressures building at the end of a grand slam: “Sometimes you have to be really, really aggressive. Sometimes some people were also aggressive [in return, like Halep], so she had to hold back a little bit and then try to be aggressive herself.”
Where Muguruza foiled Halep – who was in magnificent form – was to get inside the court and pin her deep. She will probably have to do the same to Kenin, who plays with similar attacking intent, but is vulnerable on her second serve.
Muguruza has expressed herself freely on court on her way to the final, and Martinez likes to see that.
“She’s winning a lot of good points. Even against Halep, the points were getting long and she had enough patience to be aggressive again and finish the point. Of course, if you’re winning some of those tough points, you’re going … I don’t know how you say in English – you’re going to celebrate.”
Kenin, who has always shown promise as a junior, is blossoming now at 21, but is still getting used to on-court interviews and the barrage of questions that come with relatively instant success. The world No 15 has a game that is ready to be tested, but she does not want to give too much away to an opponent who has won two majors.
But after beating the world No 1 Ashleigh Barty in the first semi-final, she was unusually empathetic, realising she had destroyed the hopes of the Australian’s growing army of fans: “First, I’d like to apologise to all of the Australian fans. I know they wanted her to win. It’s not easy for them. But I beat the world No 1, and I’m so grateful and so happy. She played such a great match. She’s a really great player.”
But Kenin – who will become the youngest American woman in the top 10 for 21 years – was greater on the day. She kept a scarily solid focus from first point to last, as did Barty, and clearly is not daunted by the prospect of winning a slam, which would change her life just as it has Naomi Osaka and Barty.
“But I’m not shocked,” Kenin said. “It’s a dream come true for me. I’ve always dreamed about this all my life. Of course, I believed in myself.”
Kenin – the youngest singles finalist here since Maria Sharapova beat Ana Ivanovic in 2008 – will have to be at her best against Muguruza, who has broken her opponent’s serve at least four times in every match here this year.
There is a sense – given substance with another impressive run by Coco Gauff until she lost to Kenin in the fourth round – that youth, or at least new faces, are bursting through at the top of the women’s game. Seven of the past 11 slam winners have been first-timers: Bianca Andreescu, Barty, Osaka, Halep, Caroline Wozniacki, Sloane Stephens and Jelena Ostapenko.
For all her promise and grit, Kenin might find that Muruguza – every bit as determined as she is – has too many well-drilled weapons for her on Saturday.
