Kvitova defeats Sharapova to win Wimbledon crown

Wimbledon 2011: Petra Kvitova defeats Maria Sharapova 6-3, 6-4 to win women's singles final on Centre Court

So the moneyed and honeyed Maria Sharapova had her Wimbledon final hijacked by an opponent, who, in some ways, is an anti-Maria, an anti-celebrity.

To the victor the spoils: Petra Kvitova holds aloft the Venus Rosewater Dish Photo: AFP

The unstarry, unaffected Petra Kvitova, a 21 year-old from the Czech Republic who thinks of herself as a "jeans and T-shirt" kind of girl, and who could not even tell you who her favourite clothes designer is, played with a nerveless ease to defeat Sharapova on Centre Court for her first grand slam title.

It had been widely supposed that this title-match would bring a comeback victory for the world's highest-earning sportswoman, for the groomed and polished Sharapova, for the lady whose face has launched a thousand advertising campaigns, yet she was beaten by someone who does not appear to know how good she is.

Kvitova, ranked eighth in the world, certainly does not have the look of an athlete who has spent much time considering her own worth. Had Sharapova won this match, kisses would have been blown to all corners of Centre Court; in the moments after Kvitova's 6-3, 6-4 victory, which she had completed with an ace banged through into the backstop, the Czech sat on her chair with her hands covering her mouth.

During an on-court interview with the BBC, Kvitova broke off and half turned away when she thought that Sue Barker was finished with her, so looking every bit like someone not used to what happens after winning a title on a big occasion. Soon after being presented with the Venus Rosewater Dish, she walked off the turf and was shown the honours board, which already had her name on it, and she let out a little embarrassed giggle, and she was then a touch self-conscious and awkward, though obviously pleased too, after she took the trophy out the back of the stadium to show the crowds.read more.