To win the US Open for her first grand slam title at age 33, Flavia Pennetta did not have to beat Serena Williams.
And she did not hang longer even after she attained her best career moment. The Italian Pennetta announced her retirement from tennis minutes after defeating compatriot Roberta Vinci to win her first major silverware.
The 33-year-old had just become the oldest first-time women’s major champion. “It’s a dream come true,” Pennetta said.
But only moments after accepting the trophy, she said she had decided to retire after her ultimate victory. “This is the way I would like to say goodbye to tennis,” Pennetta said. “I’m really happy.”
The only other Italian woman to win a major singles title was Francesca Schiavone, who captured the 2010 French Open and set the former oldest first-timer age mark at 29.
“Before this tournament I never thought to come so far. I never think to be a champion. When things come like this, it’s a big surprise to me.”
Pennetta pulled away in a match-up between a pair of Italians who were opponents and doubles partners as kids.
In one of the unlikeliest major finals in women’s tennis, the 26th-seeded Pennetta beat Vinci 7-6, 6-2 on Saturday at Flushing Meadows.
Pennetta is the oldest woman in the Open era, which began in 1968, to become a grand slam champion for the first time. Vinci, who is 32, would have earned that distinction had she been able to follow her stunning upset of Williams in Friday’s semi-finals with another victory.
This was the first major final for either participant, and the first time since WTA computer rankings were instituted in 1975 that both US Open women’s finalists were ranked outside the top 20 (Vinci is 43rd).
They grew up 65 kilometers apart in coastal towns in Puglia, a region on the heel of Italy’s boot-shaped peninsula, and have been facing each other on court for two decades – with the stakes much lower, of course.
They shared some laughter and tears in the locker room together Friday while watching a video of a TV interview they did back in 1999, when they won a junior doubles title at the French Open.
And when yesterday’s match ended, after Pennetta flung her racket overhead, she went up to the net to find Vinci, not for a handshake but for a lengthy hug. Vinci patted her pal on the back repeatedly, while Pennetta cried. Then they sat on adjacent sideline chairs and chatted, just a couple of foes and friends, sharing a special moment.
Vinci pantomimed throwing a punch as a joke, and Pennetta wrapped an arm around her.
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