The player from Italy reached the finals this year at the French Open and Wimbledon. Now she has qualified for the WTA Finals for the first time.
Jasmine Paolini was laughing, something she does loudly and often.
Paolini had just explained that the WTA Finals she most vividly remembered watching on television was one featuring Dominika Cibulkova, who captured the title in 2016. She didn’t know why she picked that one over victories by more well-known winners like Serena Williams and Ashleigh Barty.
“It was unbelievable,” Paolini, of Italy, said of Cibulkova’s win over top-seeded Angelique Kerber by phone from Shanghai in late September. Then she let out a guffaw so alluring that others often can’t help joining in.
Paolini uses the words “unbelievable” and “crazy” a lot, but mostly to describe her own journey this year. At 28, she has qualified for her first WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. She and her compatriot Sara Errani have also qualified in doubles, making Paolini the only competitor in both singles and doubles.
“It’s a very elite club,” Paolini said. “It’s really our reward for the season, so it is great to qualify.”
Paolini began the year ranked No. 29. Four years ago, she was a little-known sprite barely ranked in the top 100. But a WTA 1000 title in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in February followed by surprise runner-up finishes to Iga Swiatek at the French Open and to Barbora Krejcikova at Wimbledon thrust her into the spotlight. Now she’s ranked No. 4.
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Source: Tennis - nytimes.com
