LONDON — Linda Noskova won her first Wimbledon title in astonishing style on Saturday as the tearful Czech recovered from wasting five match points to beat Karolina Muchova in one of the most dramatic finals in All England Club history.
Noskova appeared to be on the brink of a devastating loss when she broke down in tears after squandering those match points in the second set of a Centre Court classic.
But the 21-year-old somehow regained her composure in a final with more twists than a Hollywood blockbuster.
Summoning incredible resilience, Noskova clinched her maiden Grand Slam crown with a remarkable 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 victory over her 10th seeded compatriot.
Quite how the ninth seed was able to avoid a complete meltdown in the aftermath of her mid-match collapse will go down in the annals of Wimbledon lore.
In two hours and 28 minutes of unrelenting drama, Noskova showed the heart of a champion to establish herself as the youngest woman to win Wimbledon in 15 years.
"All these matches have been so tough physically and mentally tough, today especially. It's never easy to get the last point. Karo, you really made me work for it," Noskova said after lifting the Venus Rosewater Dish.
"All the sad tears, happy tears, sweat, blood and it's all worth it. I will never forget these two weeks."
Muchova's second Grand Slam final defeat left her in tears.
"Really tough to find any words, but I'll start with Linda, my 'ex-friend'. I'm kidding obviously, kinda!" she said.
"The way you handled it is really unbelievable. Beyond this you are a very kind person. You deserve it."
The third tour-level title of Noskova's career emulated the success of her compatriot Petra Kvitova, who was the same age when she won the first of her two Wimbledon crowns in 2011.
It was a full circle moment for Noskova, who was inspired to take up tennis by the Wimbledon success of her childhood idol Kvitova.
Fittingly, Kvitova was watching from the royal box as Noskova celebrated her breakthrough victory.
