‘She’s unbelievable’ – Elena Rybakina’s coach praises the Wimbledon winner after a writing history at SW19

Rybakina upset the odds to beat Jabeur 3-6 6-2 6-2 to become the first Grand Slam winner from Kazakhstan.

The world number 12 was playing in her first Grand Slam final against world number two and fellow debutant finalist Jabeur, and fought back in a thrilling encounter on Saturday.

And her coach Vukov was full of praise for the underdog champion, admitting he was as shocked as anyone by her tournament win.

“I did not expect that to happen,” he said.

“It’s exciting. I still haven’t wrapped my head around what’s going on…especially in the last couple of matches. We told her to keep going; keep pushing, and it’s unbelievable for her.

“We started working together four years ago, playing ITF events…it’s amazing for her as a player and me as a coach.

“She’s super calm as a personality. You can’t change that much; that’s who she is. She can be a bit more fiery, yes, to win more the moments of the match rather than stopping to activate a bit more, It’s the way she is, and she’s an unbelievable person to work with.”

In true fashion for a coach, Vukov offered further feedback even after winning tennis’ biggest title.

“She still doesn’t feel her position on the court in certain moments,” he added.

“It happens quite a bit after a big shot; I’d like her to be a little bit more aggressive towards the net, using her size and wingspan.”

Eurosport tennis expert Alex Corretja was impressed by Rybakina’s tactical game againts Jabeur and tips the 23-year-old for even greater success in the future.

“Very impressive the way [Rybakina] dealt with the pressure,” he said.

“Throughout the tournament but especially in the last two rounds against [Simona] Halep and today against Jabeur.

“She was coming back from a set down… [it’s] very difficult [to do that] because she was missing so many balls.

“It was difficult to figure out how to play. But, she managed her nerves. She realised that she can dictate; Jabeur was struggling, she didn’t know what to do anymore… all those drop shots and [net approaches] didn’t work out.

“For Elena, she was hitting [well]; her forehand – the cross-court and backhand down-the-line – her serve, [as well]. She handled her emotions very nicely. It’s not that easy. We have a future, bright champion in front of us.”

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