In 1998, the late Jana Novotna faced Nathalie Tauziat in the championship match at Wimbledon—the first time a final there was contested between two players seeking their maiden Grand Slam in the Open Era.
In 1997, Novotna made a return appearance to the championship match at Wimbledon, falling to the Swiss teen Martina Hingis.
It was a different set of circumstances than her last final-round showing back in 1993, when she had the four-time champion Steffi Graf on the ropes. After a major case of nerves crept in, Novotna was left with the runner-up plate and the Duchess of Kent’s shoulder to cry on in a scene that revealed just how much losing the final meant to her.
Over the years, she continued to battle through and was rewarded with a third career Wimbledon final in 1998. On her way to the final, the Czech defeated teens Venus Williams and Hingis in the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively.
Given her place in the rankings and past successes at the All England Club, Novotna’s place in the final wasn’t a total surprise. The run of her opponent in the last round, though, was a complete shock.
Tauziat beat Lindsay Davenport, the second seed, in the quarterfinals to reach the first major semifinal of her career. The No. 16 seed then ended the surprise run of Natasha Zvereva—who had upset Graf and Monica Seles—to advance to the final.
Entering the match, the Frenchwoman was on equal ground with Novotna as the two were tied in their head-to-head matches at four wins apiece. The Frenchwoman secured the first break of the opening set to take a 2-0 lead, but Novotna got it back on serve right away. In the seventh game, Novotna broke again, then held to go up 5-3. A forehand error from Tauziat, down 4-5, gave Novotna the opening set.
In the beginning of the second, the momentum stayed with Novotna as she broke Tauziat immediately. Struggling with her serve throughout the match, though, Novotna hit her seventh double fault down break point at 3-2, which enabled Tauziat to get back on serve.
While her serve might have been a cause of concern, Novotna was performing solidly in her return games and she broke Tauziat again, then held to go up 5-3, a game away from the title.
Tauziat held to force Novotna to serve for the championship, but the Czech let the advantage escape and the set ended up going to a tiebreak. Once there, the Frenchwoman played some loose points while Novotna stepped it up on her serve. Down 2-6, Tauziat hit a serve that Novotna ripped down the line for a clean return winner, giving her the first Grand Slam singles title of her career. At 29 years, 9 months, she also became the oldest first-time major winner in the Open Era.
1
Novotna became the first player, male or female, to win the singles title representing the Czech Republic.
14
Before capturing her first Grand Slam singles title, Novotna won 14 majors in women’s and mixed doubles.
73
The last Frenchwoman to reach a Wimbledon singles final was 73 years ago when Suzanne Lenglen did it in 1925.
Follow Van on Twitter: @Van_Sias
