Ane Mintegi made history this Saturday for Spanish tennis by becoming the second Spanish Navy tennis player to enter the junior final at Wimbledon, after Magüi Serna, who achieved it in 1996. The Canary Islands fell to the French Amelie Mauresmo, who would be senior champion in 2006. Mintegi, a 17-year-old from Gipuzkoa who is not seeded, beat Czech Lina Fruhvirtova, eighth favorite, 6-3 and 7-5 in one hour and 36 minutes, and expects a rival for the title match to be played on Sunday on court 1. It could be her friend and partner in training and doubles in the tournament, Victoria Jiménez, if the Andorran, number one seed and champion of the Australian Open in 2020, defeats the German Nastasja Mariana Schunk. “It is a pride to be a Spaniard who reaches the Wimbledon final, it is very special to be here,” said Ane very shyly.
Mintegi, a native of Idiazábal and living in Barcelona, where she is progressing at TEC Carlos Ferrer Salat, has everything to be a great player. She serves well, hits the ball with power and direction, has a varied tennis that surprises and is a great receiver. “There are people who say it, but I have to concentrate on the day to day,” he warns modestly. All this with the peculiarity that he plays with prescription glasses. “I started playing with contact lenses recently, but here I have decided to play with glasses and that’s it,” he explains simply.
“I am surprised that I have gone so far”
During the tournament, she has beaten opponents with a higher ranking than her and on Thursday she astonished by winning two matches of three sets and two hours on the same day. His biggest enemy in recent days was fatigue and a sore that came out on the heel of his right foot. But she overcame it all to dominate Fruhvirtova, who was defending herself behind the ball for most of the game. “I am surprised to have come this far here, because I am a ground player and it’s difficult for me to adapt my game, but I’ve played flatter and I’ve been very aggressive, “she analyzes.
Thanks to Ane, Spain shine again in the junior tournament of Wimbledon, after the triumph of Alejandro Davidovich in 2017 and Carlos Gimeno’s runner-up in 2019. If she wins in the final, she will be the first Spanish tennis player to be proclaimed the junior winner at the All England Club.
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