A month after reaching a historic final in Paris at Roland Garros 2024, Jasmine Paolini continues to make history at Wimbledon 2024. The 28-year-old Italian – currently seventh in the WTA world rankings – reached the final on Thursday, July 11, after her match against Croatia's Vekić. It was a dramatic comeback victory that came in the last set (2-6, 6-4, 7-6). There were many moments when everything seemed to be over, but Paolini never gave up.
Of her mum and dad, she said after the victory, “They have always supported me. I will always thank them.”
But first, let's discuss that historic semifinal qualification
Jasmine Paolini had already made history on July 9 by beating American Emma Navarro in just two sets (6-2 and 6-1) in under an hour.
It was a monumental match and a historic victory. No Italian before her has ever reached the semifinals in the Wimbledon tournament, and only five have gone as far as the quarters: Lucia Valerio in 1933, Laura Golarsa in 1989, Silvia Farina in 2003, Francesca Schiavone in 2009, and Camila Giorgi in 2018.
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“Outstanding to win a match on this court, I'm so happy I don't know what to say,” she said in an interview after the match. “It's a dream to go to the semifinals. When I was a child I used to see such important matches from home, and now it's really strange to get there.”
And her quarterfinal victory over Madison Keys
On July 7, U.S. player Madison Keys was forced to retire in the third set against Paolini due to an injury. Even so, the match fully demonstrated the splendid form and feverish grit of Paolini who, as she does in every game she plays, gave some true champion shots. To all of Keys' moves, she responded with a competitive eagerness that, combined with her excellent technique, always shows how willing she is to push beyond her limits.
She also shines in doubles with Sara Errani, and the two will be in Paris 2024
After also nimbly defeating Spain's Sara Sorribes Tormo, Belgium's Grett Minne, and Canada's Bianca Andrescu in previous matches, Jasmine Paolini is proving to the world that she is one to watch. Her victory against Madison Keys may have propelled her to the quarterfinals, but she was also on the court to play in the doubles alongside Sara Errani opposite Americans Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula.
The two will also be together at the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympics, as Jasmine herself announced on June 14 on her Instagram profile. “I will play singles and doubles (with Sara Errani ofc!) at the Olympics,” she wrote. "It's great to be part of another Olympics and to play for Italy. Tokyo was great!"
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So, who is Jasmine Paolini? Here's everything you need to know about the rising tennis star
After her exploits at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, and with Paris in her future, it seems Jasmine Paolini is having a magical year. But to really understand what all these personal successes mean for her, it helps to know her full story.
Jasmine Paolini was born on January 4, 1996 to an Italian father, Ugo, and a Polish mother, Jacqueline, who is half Ghanaian. Growing up between Łódź—her mother's hometown, where she often went and where she learned Polish—and Bagni di Lucca, where her father ran a bar, little Jasmine was introduced to tennis thanks to her dad and uncle Adriano. It was the latter who first took her to the courts in Bagni di Lucca.
At the age of 15, Jasmine went to college and realised that she would like to turn her passion into a professional career despite many doubts about her height. She was told she was too short to play tennis, but she never let that discourage her. Instead, she did specific workouts that would make her even more explosive on her legs.
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In addition to a great technique based on precision, Jasmine Paolini has an agility, quickness, and power that allow her to make up for that lack of inches. "Height is not a huge deficit," she said in an interview in 2018. “In tournaments there are also some players who are too tall. Like everything, it has its pros and cons. The only question I ask myself is, how I would serve if I were taller? Maybe I would serve a little better...but maybe I would be less agile.”
At 19, Paolini made her debut among the bigs at the Internazionali di Roma qualifiers; then, in 2017, she had her first participation in the qualifiers of a Slam.
But the turning point really came thanks to a collaboration with Renzo Furlan, a coach who at first—due to commitments already made with the Serbian national team—followed her part time. In 2023 he devoted himself totally to her, and the results were immediately seen. “I am proud to have believed in this relationship despite some not easy moments,” Jasmine Paolini said a year ago. “The fact that he started to follow me on a permanent basis both in training and in tournaments for me represented a turning point, as we managed to give continuity to the work.”
In 2019, thanks to her final at the ITF tournament in Tokyo, Paolini broke into the top 100. Two years later, in Portorož, Slovenia, she won her first title by beating Alison Riske-Amritraj of the United States in the final. In spring 2023, she climbed the rankings to be among the top 50 in the world. Her heart, effort, and self-sacrifice has since brought her into the top 10.
That concentration toward her goals is also evident from her Instagram profile, which is almost (almost) totally dominated by tennis with photographs of her in action or celebrating recent victories. For this reason, very little is known about her private life. From what we can gather, it seems she likes the music of Jovanotti and Ligabue and enjoys being in the company of William, her younger brother who is also a tennis player. Surely, they must train together. And share the same dreams.
This post was originally published in Vogue Italy.