LONDON — Spaniard Garbine Muguruza's relationship with grasscourt tennis has not been smooth but it has blossomed so spectacularly that the now stands one win from being crowned Wimbledon champion.
The opponent in her way just happens to be Serena Williams, the 'Grand Slam'-seeking five-times champion, but whatever the outcome the 21-year-old Venezuelan-born player will never again walk on to an All England Club lawn with trepidation.
"I'm surprised because my two (grasscourt) tournaments before, they were not so good," Muguruza, the first Spanish woman to reach a Wimbledon final since Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario in 1996, told reporters after beating Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2 3-6 6-3 in her first grand slam semi-final.