Tennis – French Open – Roland Garros, Paris, France – June 8, 2023 Czech Republic’s Karolina Muchova celebrates winning her semi final match against Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach
Karolina Muchova came from 2-5 down in the final set and saved a match point to defeat world number two Aryna Sabalenka 7-6 (7/5), 6-7 (5/7), 7-5 in the French Open semifinals on Thursday.
AFP Sport looks at five things to know about the 26-year-old world number 43 who will be playing in her first Grand Slam final against Iga Swiatek on Saturday at Roland Garros.
Twists and turns at every corner 👀
Catch up on the Highlights of the Day by @emirates from Karolina Muchova's thrilling semifinal win over world No.2 Aryna Sabalenka.#FlyBetter #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/ocCeEzWWnK
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 8, 2023
Football family
Muchova’s father Josef Mucha is a former top-flight footballer and played as a midfielder with Sigma Olomouc and FC Zlin. He is currently assistant coach at FC Slovacko, who finished fifth in the Czech top flight last season.
Muchova’s brother Filip Mucha is also a footballer — a goalkeeper playing for FK Teplice, who finished 12th last season in the Czech first division.
Beyonce fan
Before the French Open, she and her good friend Karolina Pliskova, a former world number one, went to a Beyonce concert.
“One of the best concerts I’ve ever been to — and I go quite often,” she said. “I went to see Shawn Mendes before the US Open and the Backstreet Boys before Wimbledon and I always played well after that.”
Strings attached
Muchova plays the guitar. At the US Open in 2020, which was played under tight COVID-19 restrictions, she composed a song called US Open Bubble about her Covid-hit life there. She recorded a video at Flushing Meadows and published it on her Instagram.
Injury setbacks
Muchova has been plagued by injuries for much of her career, grappling mostly with her abdominal muscles. “When she’s healthy, she belongs in the Top 10,” says her manager Tomas Petera.
Tea and a good book
While in Paris for the French Open, she had to overcome a mild cold. She used a day off last Saturday to rest and drink lots of tea while reading — she said she liked “esoteric and educational” literature.