Defending Wimbledon champion Iga Swiatek held off an upset bid on Centre Court from Taylor Townsend 6-1, 2-6, 6-3, to advance to the second round on Tuesday in London.
Emotions overtook Swiatek, the No. 3 seed in the women’s draw, when she reached her seat post-match. With tears streaming down her cheeks, she buried her face in a towel.
“This was about believing I could do it. It’s been a tough couple of weeks. I don’t think I’ve won any third set recently,” she said.
A third set is rare territory for Swiatek in majors. Townsend became the first player to win a set against Swiatek in the first round of a Grand Slam event since Viktorija Golubic of Switzerland ousted her in the opener in 2019 in straight sets.
That remains her only loss in the first round of a major.
No. 6 Amanda Anisimova, who didn’t win a game in the 2025 final loss to Swiatek, also advanced Tuesday, beating Lina Gjorcheska of North Macedonia 6-3, 6-2.
No. 2 seed Elena Rybakina was victorious in three sets over Lois Boisson of France 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.
Swiatek saved nine of 12 break points. Townsend challenged Swiatek with a strong return game, edging closer to the net — a few feet inside the baseline — on most second serves.
The win pits Poland’s Swiatek against another former World No. 1, Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic, in the second round on Thursday. She defeated countrywoman Tereza Valentova 6-3, 6-4 on Tuesday in the first round.
Serena Williams’ first Wimbledon appearance since 2022 ended after just one match as the 44-year-old battled but came up short in a 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-3 loss to Australia’s Maya Joint.
It was largely an upset-free day in the Wimbledon women’s bracket, but three seeded competitors lost their opener, including one top-10 seed. No. 8 Elina Svitolina of Ukraine was eliminated in just 68 minutes after a 7-5, 6-2 loss to countrymate Daria Snigur, who beat a top-10 opponent for the first time since 2023, while Svitolina lost her opening match of a major for just the second time since 2018.
No. 24 Clara Tauson of Denmark made her second straight first-round exit at a grand slam with a 6-3, 6-3 defeat against Greece’s Maria Sakkari. No. 31 Donna Vekic of Croatia was also upset by Ashlyn Krueger, who rallied for a 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-4 victory.
Plenty of other seeded players took care of business, with No. 9 Czech Linda Noskova, No. 12 Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine, No. 13 Jasmine Paolini of Italy, No. 15 Russian Diana Shnaider, No. 17 Sorana Cirstea of Romania, No. 21 Czech Marie Bouzkova, No. 23 Emma Navarro, No. 25 Elise Mertens of Belgium, No. 26 Madison Keys and No. 29 Alexandra Eala of the Philippines all advancing to the second round with victories Tuesday.
–Field Level Media
