Jasmine Paolini does mum proud by winning semi-final classic at Wimbledon just two weeks after first victory on grass to set up Barbora Krejcikova showdown

Jacqueline Paolini only arrived at Wimbledon on Wednesday night, perhaps doubtful ahead of these Championships that her daughter Jasmine would progress far.

'We took her to try out for tennis when she was seven. We didn't see how it would turn out,' she said after watching the 28-year-old reach the final.

Mrs Paolini wasn't the only one. It's a mere two weeks since the Italian seventh seed, who stands 5ft 3in with a 75mph second serve, secured her first tour-level win on grass, at Eastbourne.

But she competed on Thursday in the longest, and one of the greatest, women's semi-finals these Championships have known — emerging with a place in a Wimbledon final, to go with the one she reached at last month's French Open in Paris.

Paolini will face the Czech Barbora Krejcikova, who beat fourth seed and 2022 champion Elena Rybakina. It means there will be a new women's singles champion this year and an eighth different winner in eight years.

Paolini's advance looked unlikely for a long time in the face of the unseeded Croatian Donna Vekic, a metaphor for persistence having reached a Grand Slam semi-final at the 43rd time of asking.

Vekic brought the greater power and height, mixing 115mph serves with a stone-cold drop shot which put her within a set of the final, weeks after she had said she didn't think she had enough in her to play this sport for much longer.

Paolini generated energy from the Centre Court crowd and Vekic visibly struggled, losing the second set to only the second break point she had conceded in it.

She was in tears in her chair as an extraordinary third set ebbed and flowed, leaning on her racket for support. Vekic faced down two match points before a breathless tiebreak, which Paolini took 10-8.

The emotional toll on Vekic was clear at her press conference, where she struggled to compose herself. Paolini cut a different kind of figure. 'This match will remain with me forever,' she said.

Rybakina fell apart against Krejcikova. With a game perfect for the surface, she stormed the first set but 22 unforced errors across the next two allowed the Czech to win 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 and book a second Slam final, three years after she won the French Open.

Krejcikova was close to tears afterwards in citing the influence of her late mentor Jana Novotna. 'I'm fighting for every ball,' she said. 'That's what she would want me to do. I miss her so much.'