Kvitova to Attempt Wimbledon Repeat Against Bouchard

A veteran former champ and a fast-rising Canadian media darling will contest the Wimbledon final after Petra Kvitova and Genie Bouchard won their semifinals on Thursday at Wimbledon.
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Bouchard hit out from the baseline in upsetting No. 3 seed Simona Halep 7-6(5), 6-2 to reach her first Grand Slam final.

The first set featured match breaks for a Halep ankle turn and a spectator fainting in the crowd. The second set featured Halep blinking with some key double faults and the Canadian booking a spot in the final.

“I’m not surprised to be in the final, because I’ve put in a lot of hard work and it’s been years in the making,” said the confident Canadian. “I believe in myself and I expect good results and I always want more. I’ve had a good start to the season, but I expect myself to do even better than that and that’s what I’m going to try and do.”

Kvitova beat fellow Czech Lucie Safarova, 7-6(6), 6-1 to gain her second Wimbledon final after lifting the trophy in 2011.

“I don’t have the words to describe how I’m feeling right now,” Kvitova said. “It was a tough match mentally, because Lucie is a good friend of mine — we know each other very well on and off the court — and I knew she was going to play very well. I’m just very happy I won and am in the final again.”

Kvitova will have her hands full against a player who has made one of the quickest jumps in history from the junior ranks to what will be the Top 10 following Wimbledon.

A little more than a year ago Bouchard had not competed in the main draw of a Slam, and now she is now semifinals or better this year at the Australian, French, and Wimbledon.

“I know the feeling when you hold the trophy and I really want to win my second title here and I will do everything that I can,” Kvitova said.

Bouchard, the 2012 Wimbledon junior girls’ winner, has said her immediate goal is to win that first Grand Slam title, and she also wants that feeling.

Who is your pick for the title?