At the Foro Italico in Italy on Saturday, hometown darling Jasmine Paolini upset the world’s no.3 ranked Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-2 to win the Italian Cup in front of 10,000 roaring and adoring fans.
It was a huge victory for Paolini in many ways. She became the first Italian champion to win the event in 40 years and it was another victory in her recent two-year run that has seen the 29-year-old rise up the rankings; she was ranked no.5 in the world by the WTA heading into the Final.
And of course, she won it in front of her home crowd.
At this point, I’m sure most are confused over the “All-Black Italian Open Final” heading, and that’s understandable for not many know about Paolini’s background.
But if you look at her, you quickly understand.
Paolini is from Italy and her father, Ugo Paolini, is Italian. But her mother, Jacqueline, has Polish, Danish and Ghanaian roots as her father was from Ghana and her mother was Polish.
While she turned pro in 2011 and made WTA qualifying debut four years later, not many knew about Paolini or her roots before 2023. But as she started to advance in tournaments, more began to turn their attention to the short, fiery Italian player.
And, after she made waves last year by becoming the first woman since Serena Williams in 2016 to reach the finals at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon in the same year, more Black tennis fans began to hone in on her.
“People in the general public who are Serena fans or Coco fans are now finding out about her roots,” said Courtside Coffee creator and First and Pen contributor, Merlisa Lawrence Corbett last year before the Wimbledon Final.
Jasmine, who speaks English, Italian and Polish, is proud of her roots and acknowledges how they all play a part in her career and talents.
“I feel like I’m fast on the court,” said Paolini in an interview with BNPParibasOpen.com about how her Ghanaian blood has helped her. “I have determination [from the Polish side], but of course I also have the Italian energy. It’s a mix. And I’m really proud of it.”
2024 was a banner year for Paolini. Not only did she reach both the French and Wimbledon Finals, but she also won her first WTA singles title at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and won a Women’s doubles gold medal at the Paris Olympics.
Now she starts 2025 with an upset of Coco Gauff for her second WTA singles title and did it in front of her hometown crowd.
“Incredible person and player,” said Gauff of Paolini on the awards stage.
Paolini also won her second title at the event by pairing with Sara Errani to win the Women’s Doubles title.
And with the French Open a week away and Wimbledon next month, Jasmine Paolini has two chances to finish what she started in 2024.
