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July 13 (UPI) -- Barbora Krejcikova, from the Czech Republic, stopped Italian Jasmine Paolini to win the Wimbledon women's singles championship in three sets for her second Grand Slam event title on Saturday. Krejcikova won 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 in a nearly two-hour battle between two 28-year-olds. Her other Grand Slam championship was in the 2021 French Open.
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Krejcikova was ranked 28th and the 31st seed of 32 in Wimbledon. No. 7 Paolin was seeking to become the first man or woman from Italy to win the crown at Wimbledon.
This was Krejcikova and Paolini's first head-to-head on the Women's Tennis Association Tour. They played the first round of the 2018 Australian Open qualifier tournament where the Czech dropped just three games en route to a straight-set win.
"I don't have the words," she said during the ESPN telecast. "It's unbelievable what just happened. It's the best day of my tennis career and the best day of my life."
Marketa Vondrousova, also from Czech Republic, earned last year's crown but lost in the first round. There have been eight different women's champions in as many years.
Krejcikova jumped out to a 5-1 first-set advantage and won in 35 minutes.
Paolini looked drained after the first set, but she fought back, leading 3-0 then dropping only two games as the match stretched to 71 minutes.
Paolini continued her advantage in the third set, 2-0, but then lost her advantage.
Krejcikova saved 2 break points in the final game, before serving out with her third championship point.
She spoke about the end of the third set.
"I was telling myself to be brave if it went 5-5. It was such a difficult match and such a great competition," she said. "I'm so happy to be standing here so I can enjoy the moment."
Jana Novotna, her former mentor and 1998 Wimbledon champion, died of cancer in 2017.
"Well, I think everything that happened, it changed my life," she said. "During the period that I finished juniors, I didn't know what to do. Before she passed away, she told me to go and win a slam. I achieved that. I never dreamed that I would win the same trophy Jana did in 1998."
Paolini, who finished second in the French Open, said: "It's been a beautiful two weeks."
In the semifinals, Paolini outlasted No. 37 Donna Vekic of Croatia during a 2-hour, 51-minute thriller -- the longest women's semifinal in the history of Wimbledon.
The No. 7 player in the world converted 3 of 7 break-point opportunities and logged 32 unforced errors in the 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (8) victory. Vekic converted 4 of 14 break point chances and totaled 57 unforced errors. She edged Paolini 7-5 in aces and 42-26 in winners.
Krejcikova converted 4 of 6 break points and totaled just 26 unforced errors in her 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over No. 4 Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan.
Several high-seeded players such as Iga Świątek, Coco Gauff and reigning champion Markéta Vondroušová, suffered earlier-than-expected losses.
World No. 3 Aryna Sabalenka withdrew before the tournament began.
Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz will meet No. 2 Novak Djokovic of Serbia in the men's singles final Sunday. The match will air at 9 a.m. on ESPN.
