Perspective: From Zero Wins on Tour to Wimbledon Semifinalist, Polini’s Grass-Court Comeback

Seventh-seeded Polini has stormed into the semifinals from the women’s singles 4/4 section at this year’s Wimbledon, creating her best performance in this grass-court Grand Slam. On Tuesday, local time, Polini dispatched No. 19 seed Navarro in just 58 minutes with a 6-2, 6-1 victory, becoming the first Italian woman to reach the Wimbledon semifinals in the Open Era.

While making history for her country, Polini has completely overturned her previous “poor” grass-court record over the past half month. Before this year, Polini had never won a main draw match on grass, exiting in the first round of all three of her previous Wimbledon appearances. Following her maiden Grand Slam final appearance at this year’s French Open, the transformed Polini quickly adapted to grass, reaching the semifinals in Eastbourne the week before Wimbledon and then matching that feat at the All England Club.

In her post-match interview, a disbelieving Polini said, “I watched the Wimbledon finals many times as a child because I was a big Federer fan, and those are my strongest memories of Wimbledon. Now standing here having won this match and reached the Wimbledon semifinals, it feels strange, but I’m very happy.”

As a traditional clay-court player from Italy, Polini boasts a solid baseline game, a strong style, explosive power, and tenacity, which helped her make a splash at this year’s French Open. However, on the vastly different surfaces of clay and grass, Polini has continued her impressive performances this season. How did she manage this?

When discussing Polini’s meteoric rise this year, we often overlook that she is also an excellent doubles player, winning the title in Rome with partner Errani earlier this year and finishing runner-up in the French Open women’s doubles. Her world rankings in both singles and doubles entered the top 10 this season, and she has effectively applied her excellent net skills to grass-court play with great success.

In her quarterfinal match against Navarro, Polini came to the net 17 times, winning 16 of those points, frequently scoring at crucial moments. This not only made her victories more efficient but also boosted her confidence and morale. The decline of the serve-and-volley tactic on grass courts is evident, with players preferring to attack from the baseline, combined with slice and drop shots. Polini has skillfully utilized this traditional tactic, allowing her to thrive on grass.

“Perhaps I never realized it before, but my coach told me I could do well on grass, and I didn’t really believe him. I said okay, okay, but I wasn’t entirely convinced,” Polini said in her post-match interview. “He kept telling me this before going to Eastbourne, and I remember the first few days there were tough, needing time to adjust. But that’s true for every player; everyone has to transition from clay to grass.”

“As the matches went on, I felt better and better. My shots on grass felt great, and my movement was good too. I kept telling myself, ‘You can play well on grass.’ Yes, I’m now enjoying playing on grass.”

Polini’s semifinal opponent will be Croatia’s Vekić, who is also making her debut in a Grand Slam semifinal. All three of their previous meetings have been on hard courts, with Polini winning two of them. The last woman to reach back-to-back finals at the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year was Serena Williams in 2016. Can the 28-year-old Polini replicate this achievement?

Vekić

“Reaching the semifinals of a Grand Slam means you’re facing tough opponents, and she (Vekić) is in great form right now,” Polini said looking ahead to the next match. “I’m glad I get to play another match here, and I hope to enjoy the next one. I’ll give it my all, putting in 100% effort for every point.”