WIMBLEDON, England (AP)—Fifteen years after reaching the semifinals at Wimbledon, and three years after coming out of a long retirement, Kimiko Date-Krumm won another match Monday at the All England Club.
The 40-year-old Japanese veteran was the first player to reach the second round at this year’s tournament after a 6-0, 7-5 win over British wild card Katie O’Brien.
Her last Wimbledon win came against Mary Pierce in the 1996 quarterfinals. She then lost to eventual champion Steffi Graf 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 in a rain-affected match—the last of her three appearances in the semifinals of a Grand Slam.
“Of course I remember 1996, in the Centre Court I played against Steffi and it was darkness. I played two days with her,” Date-Krumm said. “It was a big, big memory for me. Then after 15 years I won the first round, and it’s already miracle.”
A big part of the reason for the long gap between wins is that Date-Krumm spent 12 years in retirement, from 1996 to 2008. Since returning, she has twice lost in the first round.
With five-time champion Venus Williams her next opponent, Date-Krumm might not have much chance of reaching the third round—but she could at least get to step on Centre Court again.
“First time to play against Venus. She’s of course good player, especially on grass,” Date-Krumm said. “So for me it’s nothing to lose. I hope I can enjoy to play even (if) I win or lose.”
Since returning to the tour, Date-Krumm has become the second oldest player to win a WTA title (in Seoul) and last year became the oldest finalist (Osaka).
At 40 years and nine months, Date-Krumm is the third oldest woman to win a singles match at Wimbledon—although she doesn’t rate her chances of beating Martina Navratilova’s record of 47.
“No. I think it’s impossible,” she said, before laughing as she realized that her 47th birthday wasn’t as far away as she originally thought.
Williams, at 31, is having to get used to being older than most of her opponents these days, but the roles will be reversed against Date-Krumm.
“I thought it was amazing when she came back,” Williams said. “I watched her results. She’s been playing so well. I always root for her actually.
“I know this has always been a really good surface for her, especially with the game that she plays. So I definitely won’t take anything for granted, because I’ve seen that she’s taken out a lot of top players since she’s been back. I’m looking forward to it.”