logo
Wimbledon: No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka is the last top-five women's seed left. Carlos Alcaraz wins

Wimbledon: No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka is the last top-five women's seed left. Carlos Alcaraz wins

Independent16 hours ago
Aryna Sabalenka joked that she'd love it if the upsets at Wimbledon would stop, which makes sense, given that she is ranked No. 1.
She's also the only one of the five top-seeded women still in the bracket after No. 4 Jasmine Paolini, last year's runner-up, followed No. 2 Coco Gauff, No. 3 Jessica Pegula and No. 5 Zheng Qinwen on the way out.
Sabalenka was two points from dropping the opening set of her second-round match three times on Wednesday before asserting herself for a 7-6 (4), 6-4 victory over Marie Bouzkova.
In all, a record-tying 23 seeded players — 10 women, 13 men — were gone by the end of Day 2, equaling the most at any Grand Slam event in the past 25 years. Five more women joined them by losing Wednesday: Paolini, No. 12 Diana Shnaider, No. 21 Beatriz Haddad Maia, No. 22 Donna Vekic and No. 29 Leylah Fernandez.
'Of course you're going to know the overall picture,' Sabalenka said, then added with a chuckle: "I hope it's no upsets anymore in this tournament, if you know what I mean.'
She is a three-time Grand Slam champion, with all of those titles coming on hard courts at the Australian Open or U.S. Open. She also was the runner-up to Gauff at the clay-court French Open last month — drawing criticism from some over her post-match comments, a flap she and Gauff set aside via social media videos last week — but hasn't been past the semifinals on the grass of the All England Club.
A year ago, Sabalenka was forced to miss Wimbledon because of an injured shoulder.
On Wednesday, the record-breaking heat of the first two days gave way to rain that delayed the start of play on smaller courts for about two hours, along with temperatures that dropped from above 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius) to below 68 F (20 C).
At Centre Court, the 48th-ranked Bouzkova went ahead 6-5 in the first set with the match's initial service break thanks to a double-fault by Sabalenka. Bouzkova served for that set, and was two points away from it at 30-15 in that game, again at 30-all, then once more at deuce.
But on the last such occasion, Sabalenka came through with a forehand volley winner she punctuated with a yell, followed by a down-the-line backhand winner that was accompanied by another shout.
'That was a tough moment," said Sabalenka, who will face 2021 U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu next. 'Until that point, (my) return wasn't great enough to break her serve. I'm really glad ... everything clicked together and I was able to break her back. I kind of like felt a little bit better.'
That sent them to a tiebreaker, and from 4-all there, Sabalenka took the next three points, ending the set with a powerful forehand return winner off a 67 mph second serve. In the second set, the only break arrived for a 3-2 lead for Sabalenka, and that was basically that.
Sabalenka compiled a 41-17 edge in winners while making only 18 unforced errors in a match that lasted a little more than 1 1/2 hours.
What else happened Wednesday at Wimbledon?
Raducanu defeated 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova 6-3, 6-3, and Australian Open champion Madison Keys, who is seeded sixth, beat Olga Danilovic 6-4, 6-2. In men's action, two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz extended his winning streak to 20 matches with a 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 victory over 733rd-ranked qualifier Ollie Tarvet, who plays for the University of San Diego. But No. 12 Frances Tiafoe joined the parade of seeds exiting, eliminated by 2022 Wimbledon semifinalist Cam Norrie 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-5.
Who plays Thursday at the All England Club?
Novak Djokovic, who has won seven of his 24 major championships at Wimbledon, will lead off the Centre Court schedule on Day 4 against Britain's Dan Evans at 1:30 p.m. local time (8:30 a.m. ET), followed by Iga Swiatek vs. Caty McNally, and No. 1 Jannik Sinner vs. Aleksandar Vukic.
___
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Tarvet's tenacity hailed by Alcaraz after Wimbledon Centre Court clash
Tarvet's tenacity hailed by Alcaraz after Wimbledon Centre Court clash

South Wales Argus

time8 minutes ago

  • South Wales Argus

Tarvet's tenacity hailed by Alcaraz after Wimbledon Centre Court clash

The Spanish second seed breezed past the British qualifier from St Albans but that told far from the whole story after Tarvet's whirlwind couple of days. After navigating his way through qualifying, the world No.733 toppled Leandro Riedi in straight sets to tee up a tantalising date with Alcaraz on Centre Court. He suffered a battling 6-1 6-4 6-4 defeat but two-time defending Wimbledon champion Alcaraz, 22, is backing the US-based 21-year-old to use his experience as a springboard for big things. 'I told him congratulations for the run, just keep it going, keep working hard,' he said. 'It seems like he's a really nice guy and hard worker. It seems like he loves tennis. SUPERB from Ollie Tarvet 👏 Going toe to toe with the very best on Centre Court 🎥 @Wimbledon — LTA (@the_LTA) July 3, 2025 'He played with such a good passion out there that is really important. 'How far he can go, I don't know. If he chooses to stay in college, the level that we can see in college is pretty high. 'If he keeps working hard, if he keeps practicing hard and playing in professional level, I think he can go far.' The five-time Grand Slam champion, who combatted a partisan Centre Court crowd to overcome the home favourite, added: 'It's different. So far I'm just grateful for the support I'm receiving in Wimbledon. 'I've never played against a British player. Today was the first one, so it's just different. 'It was a great atmosphere, as always. I just have to say thank you for the crowd that they was really respectful for me, for the opponent, for the matches. 'It was a different experience that I'm glad to have experienced something like that, as well.' Tarvet battled admirably but was unable to spring what would have been one of the biggest shocks in All England Club history. The US college student had become the first British man in eight years to qualify for Wimbledon and kicked off his SW19 campaign with a stunning 6-4 6-4 6-4 triumph against Swiss player Riedi on Monday. That teed up a dream clash with Alcaraz on the hallowed Centre Court turf 48 hours later but the world No.2, ranked 731 places above him, simply proved too hot to handle. Alcaraz, who beat 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic in the previous two finals here, waltzed to victory in just over two hours to set up a third round clash with either German Jan-Lennard Struff or Canadian Félix Auger-Aliassime. Tarvet, who was roared on by friends and family in south-west London, said: 'I just learned just how difficult mentally it is. "I've played against some really good players before, but not quite the level of Alcaraz. "I feel like as soon as I had 95% focus, I lost a game. When I made a big emotional push to break him twice, I got broken to love straight back. 'It was because I gave everything, kind of emptied the tank for that game to break him, but then you have to hold. 'It's just really, really difficult to keep that 100% focus and 100% intensity.' Tarvet should be collecting £99,000 in prize money, but the strict financial rules governing the American college system only allow him to claim £7,290 in profit each year. But what he lacks in his bank account, he makes up for in self-belief – and if Alcaraz's comments are anything to go by, his will surely be a name we will be hearing again. For the latest action on the British summer grass court season, check out the LTA website.

Alfie Hewitt hopes to peak at right time ahead of Wimbledon
Alfie Hewitt hopes to peak at right time ahead of Wimbledon

South Wales Guardian

time9 minutes ago

  • South Wales Guardian

Alfie Hewitt hopes to peak at right time ahead of Wimbledon

Alfie Hewett hopes he is peaking at the perfect time ahead of his dual Wimbledon title defence. The Norfolk wheelchair tennis star, 27, eased into the semi-finals of the LTA's Lexus British Open Roehampton with a comfortable straight sets triumph over Spaniard Daniel Caverzaschi. Hewett required three sets to battle past Tom Egberink the previous day but showed more signs of his fluent best with a straightforward 6-3 6-4 victory over Caverzaschi, 31, on Wednesday. The south-west London event functions as the precursor to Wimbledon next week and 33-time Grand Slam champion Hewett, who grabbed both singles and doubles SW19 glory last summer, believes things are clicking into gear nicely. 'It's good to get through and it done in straight sets,' said Hewett, who will face long-term doubles partner Gordon Reid in the semi-finals today. 'He's a tricky opponent who gets a lot of balls back – he's unorthodox at times and never easy. 'There were moments I was happy with and other moments I can improve on for next round in order to go through the gears. 'As a whole I'm really happy – for this tournament I want to try and play some of my best tennis leading into Wimbledon next week. 'It's not always possible, but I want to try and get as close to it as possible. 'Yesterday was a really slow start, but I think since that I can be happy with my level. 'I'm a perfectionist so I'm always looking for more and to be better – I'm making good inroads and steadily getting to the level I want to compete at next week.' Elsewhere, fellow Norfolk star Ben Bartram fell to a 6-1 6-3 defeat against experienced Argentine Gustavo Fernandez. Bartram, 19, had edged past American Casey Ratzlaff in three sets the previous day but was unable to join Hewett in the semi-finals after third seed Fernandez, 31, proved too hot to handle. 'It was definitely a tough one,' he said. 'I was trying to find a way to compete throughout the match but was struggling. 'I've been working on new things in training to develop my game – but it's still early stages and this has been a really good experience.'

Wimbledon's ‘most beautiful debutant' worked as model and delivery driver and was left in tears over her bank balance
Wimbledon's ‘most beautiful debutant' worked as model and delivery driver and was left in tears over her bank balance

Scottish Sun

time11 minutes ago

  • Scottish Sun

Wimbledon's ‘most beautiful debutant' worked as model and delivery driver and was left in tears over her bank balance

MODEL PRO Wimbledon's 'most beautiful debutant' worked as model and delivery driver and was left in tears over her bank balance WIMBLEDON star Carson Branstine worked as a model and as a delivery driver to fund her tennis career. The Canadian qualified for the tournament and bagged £66,000 in the process. Advertisement 9 Carson Branstine made her debut at Wimbledon this week Credit: Getty 9 It has been a long journey to the All England Club for the Canadian Credit: PA 9 Branstine has juggled multiple jobs alongside her tennis career Credit: Instagram @carsonbranstine 9 She has a degree in Society, Ethics and Law Credit: Instagram @carsonbranstine 9 The Canadian has worked as a model and as a delivery driver Credit: Instagram Branstine was defeated by world No1 Aryna Sabalenka but she was delighted to make just her second ever Grand Slam appearance. It has been a difficult journey for the 24-year-old to reach the All England Club, with Branstine revealing she was reduced to tears after realising she only had £19 ($26) left in her bank account. She told "When you play ITF tournaments and finance your own life as a young athlete, everything is very expensive. "I live in Southern California, and just filling up the tank was seriously draining my bill. Advertisement "I remember one morning, a couple of weeks before I played my first WTA final in Cancun, I looked at my account balance and only had $26. "I thought about how I'm going to finance myself for the tournament now. I cried. I called my friends, I wasn't allowed to call my parents - if they found out, they would be very angry. "I just said to myself, 'Don't think too much. Do it.' And so after training I drove around Los Angeles and delivered dinners to people." Branstine, who has been labelled 'Wimbledon's most beautiful debutant', funded her tennis career by working as a delivery driver. Advertisement CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS She has also worked as a model and boasts a Bachelor's degree in Society, Ethics, and Law with a double minor in Philosophy and Sports Management. The California resident even assisted a lawyer and attended court, working on cases involving family law. Katie Boulter stunned by world No101 in Wimbledon second round as British No2 blown away by 21 year old Argentine But modelling is her favourite work outside of tennis, with Branstine admitting she loves being in front of the camera. Advertisement She said: "I love being in front of the camera during a shoot. "It's fun, I love fashion. It's been one of the reasons I've been able to pay some of my trips. "I didn't want to ask my parents for anything. I wanted everything to come from me and from my tennis. "I wasn't signed by these agencies because of my tennis, it was for my look. "Modelling and tennis are weirdly similar - you are an object a lot, and people sometimes forget you're a person too." 9 Branstine has made just two Grand Slams in her career Credit: Instagram @carsonbranstine Advertisement 9 She was once reduced to tears by her bank balance Credit: Instagram @carsonbranstine 9 She bagged £66,000 with her Wimbledon appearance Credit: Instagram @carsonbranstine

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store