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It seems outrageous to call a 28 year old sapling a late bloomer but, in tennis terms, Paolini is. Up until the beginning of this year, she had only won four Grand Slam matches from a total of 16.
2024, however, has seen something of a turnaround. She reached the fourth round of the Australian Open, danced in the top 20 after winning the WTA 1000 Dubai Tennis Championship and has now clawed her way into the French Open Final. “ To dream,” she told the crowd after winning her semi-final, “is the most important thing in sport.”