As a result, Puig will be Puerto Rico’s first female Olympic medalist.
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Monica Puig of Puerto Rico, center, winner of the gold medal, Germany’s Angelique Kerber, left, winner of the silver medal and Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic, winner of the bronze medal pose after the medals ceremony of th.
“I know my country really appreciates this, and I wanted to give them this victory”, she said. “I’m just ready for something different”. The world no. 34 Puig defeats world no. 2 Kerber 6-4, 4-6, 6-1 after a two hour and ten minute semifinal match.
Fans had filled pubs and restaurants to watch the drama unfold.
Puig’s parents, Jose and Astrid, were unable to watch their daughter’s historic win because they did not have enough time to obtain visas to travel to Brazil. Prior to facing Kerber in the Rio final four, she has beaten higher ranked players most notably Spain’s Garbine Muguruza, Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Kerber’s compatriot Laura Siegemund.
“It’s not the medal I wish but still it’s silver, and before I came here I said to myself I would do everything to win a medal and I won a silver one and I’m proud to represent my country and to take an Olympic medal back home”.
“Best sport moment I have ever witnessed”, former major league baseball player Alex Cora said.
Puerto Rico’s male athletes have won eight medals at past games, however Puig also became the first woman to win a medal representing the island.
Besides the handsome year-round weather, Puerto Rico has another great reason to party because their Olympic tennis team is sitting atop of the tennis world this weekend.
She broke again in the final game of the first set, closing it out with a superb backhand down the line. Monica Puig converted on her single break point try during the second set.
Murray will look to claim gold for Britain in tomorrow’s final but faces a tough test against Del Potro who eliminated world number one Novak Djokovic in the first round. Kerber fired 6 aces to 1 against her opponent. “She beat me. She played close to perfection, made very few mistakes”.
CNN’s Don Riddell reported that an emotional Puig entered the press room on her phone later Saturday screaming “Yes, I did it” to the person – believed to be her mother – on the other end. He punctuated a winning point late in the third set with a roar and a triple-fist-pump shuffle that ignited all the Spaniards in the crowd, and the many Brazilians who were rooting against the Argentinean del Potro. “I know my life is going to change a bit”. She was going for it.
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Nadal, the 2008 singles champion, had won the men’s doubles on Friday with Marc Lopez but playing his 10th match of the tournament finally told on him. She was hitting everything, she played a great match.
