Wimbledon: Linda Noskova reveals secret ingredients in emotional title success

An all-round athlete invoking lucky charms including a nose piercing, Linda Noskova showed remarkable grit to follow in the footsteps of compatriot and role model Petra Kvitova by winning the Wimbledon title.

The 21-year-old recovered after wasting five match points in the second set to beat fellow Czech and good friend Karolina Muchova 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 in Saturday’s final.

Noskova, who will rise from 12th to seventh in the WTA rankings on Monday, is the same age as Kvitova was when she won the first of her two Wimbledon titles in 2011.

Kvitova was watching on from the royal box at the All England Club and greeted Noskova after her victory in the clubhouse.

“As a kid I was always looking up to her,” said Noskova, who has now won three career titles, including the Berlin grass tournament in June.

“She was the face of Czech tennis. When she won Wimbledon, I definitely noticed that and maybe she helped me to get into tennis a little bit.”

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