Kerber willing to carry hopes of her nation in Wimbledon final

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  • Angelique Kerber.

    There was heartbreak for Germany in the Euros, and the country is waiting for its first Wimbledon champion in 20 years – is Angelique Kerber happy to carry the nation’s sporting hopes?

    “I am in the final now, and I will try to take the flag for Germany and the hopes,” a zen-looking Kerber told reporters on Friday at the All England Club.

    The last German to win at Wimbledon was Steffi Graf, in 1996, and Kerber will try to change that when she takes on Serena Williams in Saturday’s final.

    “I know it’s 20 years ago. It’s a long time. I will try to be the next German one who win Wimbledon,” said the No4 seed.

    “But still, it’s a long, long way still. It’s another tough match before me. I’m trying not to think about this pressure, because I know that when I put too much pressure on myself, I will not play my best tennis.

    “That’s why I will go out there, try to enjoy the final, and not think about, yeah, the pressure and everything around.”

    Kerber will be facing Serena in a grand slam final for a second time this year, having beaten the American to win the Australian Open in January.

    This is the first time since 2006 that the same two women will face-off in multiple grand slam finals in the same season and Kerber sees it as both a blessing and a curse.

    “I expect, for sure, a really tough match. I know that she will go out and try to beat me, especially because she lost against me in Australia,” said Kerber.

    “It’s the final. It’s the last match of the tournament. For sure I will be nervous like before every single match. But I think that right now I can handle it better. When I’m going on court, after the first few games, I think I will not be so nervous like before.

    “I will try to take the experience from Australia and trying to be a little bit more relaxed.”

    A lot has been made of the few days Kerber has spent hitting with both Graf and her husband Andre Agassi in Las Vegas, last year and this year. And while it was undoubtedly beneficial, it is Kerber’s coach, Torben Beltz, who has helped her the most.

    They worked together for most of Kerber’s career, and after a two-year split, they reunited before Indian Wells last year and it proved a real turning point for the German.

    “I think the most important thing for me is that he knows me really well. He knows, yeah, when he can speak with me, and when better not. This is really good because I know him over 10 years right now,” said Kerber.

    “He’s always supporting me, doesn’t matter how I’m playing. He knows how my game is. I know that I can trust him on court and also off court. Yeah, this is really special.”

    Serena is a six-time Wimbledon champion and is a force of nature on grass, but Beltz does not see much difference between squaring off with the American on this surface compared to others.

    Many players have suffered lengthy slumps after recording a maiden grand slam title victory but Kerber has managed to limit that period and she is back in a major final just six months later.

    “I think it’s great because I think the time directly after the Australian Open was pretty tough, because it was the first time and she had to get used to it,” Beltz told Sport360.

    “But I think now everything settled down and she started to play very good in Birmingham and she’s playing good now so I think now she’s playing good tennis and she’s ready for some more.”

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