Elena Rybakina was one of the most surprising Grand Slam champions in the past few years, but her triumph at the 2022 Wimbledon was certainly no coincidence as she constantly kept proving her qualities.
The 23-year-old Kazakhstani player entered the 2022 Wimbledon draw as the seventeenth-seeded, and she wasn't named as any big favorite in tournament previews. However, as the third major of the season progressed, Elena Rybakina kept showing very solid performances and eliminated some very strong players.
On her way to the title, she took on two Grand Slam champions, and one of those players also triumphed in the All-England Club. In the final, she played a woman who was also making history for her country in 2022 and took Rybakina to three sets on the Centre Court.
Who were those players? You should guess that in our quiz! Once you're done with it, you can refresh your mind with our summary below, or use it as a hint if you're unsure about some of the answers.
Elena Rybakina's 2022 Wimbledon Triumph Summary:
The 2022 Wimbledon Championship was special in a sense since the Russian and Belarusian athletes were not allowed to compete. Paradoxically, it was a player born in Russia, now representing Kazakhstan, who won the trophy.
Rybakina started against a lucky loser, Coco Vandeweghe, in the first round, and she had no problems against the American, beating her in two sets. She managed to repeat that also in the second round, despite facing a former Grand Slam champion Bianca Andreescu.
After that, the Kazakhstani bested rising Chinese talent Qinwen Zheng and Croatia's Petra Martic, both in straight sets, to reach her maiden quarterfinal at Wimbledon.
In the quarterfinals of the grass-court major, first player managed to take a set away from Rybakina, as Ajla Tomljanovic had a one-set lead, but lost her advantage and the match in three sets.
Former Wimbledon champion, Simona Halep, was another obstacle for Rybakina, but she beat her easily in two sets. However, her final match wasn't so straightforward, as once again, the 17th seed had to overcome a one-set deficit.
This time, Ons Jabeur was the player who had the lead against Rybakina, but the Kazakhstani player staged yet another comeback to win her maiden Grand Slam title.
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