Karolina Muchova and Linda Noskova will contest the 2026 Wimbledon women’s singles final on Saturday, July 11.
A first-time Grand Slam champion will be crowned at Wimbledon, but which Czech star will lift the title?
Who will win the 2026 Wimbledon women’s final?
An all-Czech clash!
Former British number one Greg Rusedski isn’t sure, although he has now explained why he wants Muchova to win the final.
Greg Rusedski wants Karolina Muchova to win Wimbledon because her coach was his best man
During the latest episode of ‘Off Court Cuts‘, Rusedski shared his thoughts on the Wimbledon final.
“I don’t know who is going to win,” he said.
“It’s really difficult, if you had called this final at the beginning of the tournament, well done. I don’t think anybody on the planet would have!
“I have no idea what is going to happen in the women’s final, I’m not even going to make a brave call either way.
“But I know who I want to win from a personal point of view.
“Obviously, for my best man and former coach, I’d love to see Muchova win the title, because it would be another special moment for a friend of mine.”
Sven Groeneveld, then his coach, was the best man at Rusedski’s wedding in 1999.
Today, the Dutchman works with Muchova, having joined her team at the beginning of the season.
Since Groeneveld joined the team, Muchova has won her first WTA 1000 title (Doha) and reached her maiden Wimbledon final.
Rusedski would love to see his former coach guide the Czech number one to Wimbledon glory, and he might just get his wish.
Muchova has impressed many at the All England Club this year, defeating three multiple-Grand Slam champions in her last three matches.
Karolina Muchova’s route to the Wimbledon final
- 1R [WIN] vs Anastasia Zakharova, 6-3, 6-2
- 2R [WIN] vs Zhang Shuai, 6-3, 6-2
- 3R [WIN] vs Mananchaya Sawangkaew, 6-2, 7-6
- 4R [WIN] vs Barbora Krejcikova, 7-5, 5-7, 6-3 (2021 French Open, 2024 Wimbledon)
- QF [WIN] vs Naomi Osaka, 7-6, 6-4 (2018 US Open, 2019 Australian Open, 2020 US Open, 2021 Australian Open)
- SF [WIN] vs Coco Gauff, 6-2, 1-6, 7-6 (2023 US Open, 2025 French Open)
Rusedski also delivered his verdict on Muchova’s semi-final win, where she capitalised on Coco Gauff’s match point blunder to reach the final.
“Coco [Gauff] will kick herself with that forehand. She should have driven it instead of playing the drop shot; she would have been in her first Wimbledon finals,” he said.
“But you have got to give Coco a lot of credit for her resilience as well as Muchova, because she was getting tight at those latter stages, but found a way to make it into the Wimbledon finals.
“To me, she is the most complete tennis player on the women’s tour. She has every shot in the book, the slice, can come forward, great two-handed backhand, moves well, serves well, does everything well, so it will be interesting to see how the all-Czech final goes.”
Muchova and Noskova have met once before, at last year’s US Open.
There, Muchova won a tight three-set match, 6-7, 6-4, 6-2.
Karolina Muchova vs Linda Noskova – Match stats
| Stats | Karolina Muchova | Linda Noskova |
| Aces | 7 | 7 |
| Double faults | 2 | 15 |
| 1st Serve % | 58% | 62% |
| Win % on 1st Serve | 72% | 61% |
| Win % on 2nd Serve | 62% | 59% |
| Break points | 5/18 | 2/2 |
She’ll be looking to repeat the feat on Saturday with the Wimbledon title on the line.
The two major concerns for Karolina Muchova ahead of the Wimbledon final
Muchova has played exceptionally well at Wimbledon this year; however, there was some cause for concern during the latter stages of her semi-final match.
The Czech was seen grimacing in pain, holding her side during the match tiebreak, and while she didn’t seem too worried in her press conference, it might be something to keep an eye on in the final.
Secondly, Muchova’s fans won’t need to be reminded of her record in finals.
Before this year’s Qatar Open, Muchova had lost four consecutive finals and hadn’t won a title since 2019.
And while she has turned things around this year, winning in Doha and Bad Homburg, her 3-6 record in finals leaves a lot to be desired.
Luckily for Muchova, her opponent, Noskova, doesn’t have a great record in finals either, winning just two of the five tour-level finals she has played.
So with all that being said, perhaps Rusedski was right. It’s just too close to call!
