Sabine Lisicki, the apple of tennis' eye this Wimbledon, is excelling on the all-grass court despite facing a tremendous obstacle-Lisicki is allergic to grass.
"I used to hate grass. I have strong allergies to grass, and have to take medicine, but I have learnt how to handle this," Lisicki said. "I sneeze when I'm playing on the grass, but that's just the way it is. The most important thing is to be out there playing on it."
Lisicki has performed well on the grass court before, reaching the quarterfinals for the fourth consecutive year, and claims Wimbledon is her favorite event to play in. Following her loss to Lisicki, women's No. 1 Serena Williams told reporters that Lisicki's victory should not have come as such a surprise.
"I don't think it's a huge shock," Williams said. "She is a great player. Her ranking has no effect on what she should be. She should be ranked higher. She just has a super, super game to play well on grass."
Lisicki did not rest on her laurels after knocking off Williams, and ending her 34-match winning streak that included a dominant run to the French Open title. She went on to defeat No. 4 Agnieszka Radwanska 6-4, 2-6, 9-7. She is now the first German to reach a Wimbledon final since Steffi Graf achieved the feat 14 years ago in 1999.
"I think I haven't realized it yet. When I arrived here at the tournament, I just said that anything's possible. That's what I believed. I still do," Lisicki said.
Having rebounded from tough spots in both matches against Serena and Radwanska, Lisicki has gained the confidence to come out on top no matter the circumstances.
"I love the sport so much," she said. "I miss it so much when I cannot be out there on the court. The love of the game just gives me the belief to overcome anything that comes.
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