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Puig beats Kerber to make Olympic history

August 14, 2016

Puig’s success is only the ninth medal ever won by island nation Puerto Rico, and their first ever gold in Olympic competition. Kerber's Olympic journey ends with a silver medal.

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Rio Olympischen Spiele 2016 13 08 - Monica Puig Tennis Finale
Image: Getty Images/AFP/L. Acosta

Monica Puig produced a devastating final set to beat Angelique Kerber 6-4 4-6 6-1 in the women's final and claim gold for Puerto Rico, their first in Olympic history.

Puig, ranked 34 in the world, went into the match as the underdog as she faced off against in-form Kerber, the world number two and reigning Australian Open champion.

Puig, by contrast, had never made it beyond the quarter-finals in a Grand Slam tournament - and the odds were stacked against her.

The 22-year-old claimed the first set as Kerber suffered a shoulder injury. But the German roared back in a close second, only for Puig to run away with the third.

Victory for Puig came in a dramatic seventh game of the final set when she saved six break points before taking gold on a fourth match point when a Kerber forehand sailed wide.
"Oh my God," she screamed before breaking down in tears and parading her national flag around centre court.
Rio Olympischen Spiele 2016 13 08 - Angelique Kerber Tennis Finale
Kerber required treatment on a back injury between sets.Image: picture-alliance/dpa/L. Schulze

Kerber had cruised into the final without dropping a set as the second seed aimed to emulate Steffi Graf who was Germany's last champion at the 1988.

However, her perfect record in Rio ended when Puig grabbed the first set against a suddenly lacklustre looking German who required treatment on a back injury between sets.

Her medical timeout worked wonders as she broke in the first game of the second set. Puig retrieved the damage in the eighth game, but she faltered when she had the chance to serve for a 5-4 lead.

Kerber, 28, levelled the final in the 10th game but needed four set points to get the job done. That set the foundation for the decider where Puig raced into a 5-0 lead before having to suffer for her place in history during a marathon seventh game.

Puig's success is only the ninth medal ever won by island nation Puerto Rico, and she becomes the first unseeded women's individual gold medalist since 1988.

mds (AP/AFP)