Andreeva, Swiatek And Navarro Bring Stability To Wimbledon Women’s Draw

Mirra Andreeva
Mirra Andreeva (photo: Wimbledon video)

WIMBLEDON/WASHINGTON, July 3, 2025 (by Michael Dickens)

With so much of the Wimbledon Championships women’s draw decimated by upsets during the first three days – particularly among the top five seeds, where No. 2 Coco Gauff, No. 3 Jessica Pegula, No. 4 Jasmine Paolini and No.5  Zheng Qinwen are all out of the grass-court major – a trio of Top-10 seeds brought some much-needed stability to the All England Club on Day 4 as Thursday’s play took place under cooler conditions and partly-cloudy skies.

First, No. 10 seed Emma Navarro of the United States, who eliminated two-time champion Petra Kvitova of Czechia in her final Wimbledon appearance Tuesday, made quick work of No. 46 Veronika Kudermetova of Russia, winning 6-1, 6-2, in 74 minutes on No. 3 Court.

Navarro won 60 percent of her receiving points and converted five of six break-point chances against Kudermetova. She outpointed her opponent 66-40 in advancing to face defending Wimbledon champion and No. 17 seed Barbora Krejcikova of Czechia in Saturday’s third round. Krejcikova defeated 67th-ranked American Caroline Dolehide, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2, in one hour and 51 minutes on No. 2 Court.

“I’m feeling really good,” Navarro said during her on-court interview. “I played on this court back in juniors, so it’s nice to come back today. It’s intimate, I felt energy from the crowd – I had some New Yorkers cheering me on. It’s a really fun court. I’m happy to get the win, happy to survive and advance to see another day at Wimbledon.”

Navarro added: “These courts are pretty unbeatable; they’re the best in the world. I’m enjoying myself, trying not to tear up the grass too much at the baseline, just having some fun.”

Next, No. 7 seed Mira Andreeva of Russia, in her third Wimbledon appearance, advanced to the third round with a 6-1, 7-6 (4) victory over No. 63 Lucia Bronzetti of Italy, in one hour and 33 minutes on No. 1 Court. It was her 12th win against an opponent ranked outside the Top 50.

Andreeva won 77 percent of her first-serve points, hit 21 winners, converted three of six break points and outpointed Bronzetti 74-53.

After defeating No. 86 Mayar Sherif of Egypt in the first round in straight sets, Andreeva hasn’t dropped a set in her first two matches. Her 34 match wins this season is fourth-best on the WTA Tour, trailing only Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek and Pegula. Next, she will face No. 55 Hailey Baptiste of the United States, who ended the run of 97th-ranked lucky loser Victoria Mkoko of Canada, 7-6 (6), 6-3, in one hour and 38 minutes on Court 15.

“It was a really tough match. In the beginning I felt like I was playing great,” Andreeva said during her on-court interview. “I was taking the ball early, trying to play aggressive. Then, in the second set, she started to play better and I got a little bit nervous. Yeah, I’m super happy that I managed to push myself to fight until the end.”

Finally, No. 8 seed Iga Swiatek of Poland rallied for a 5-7, 6-2, 6-1 win over 208th-ranked American Caty McNally in two hours and 25 minutes on Centre Court. In a battle between former junior teammates and foes, Swiatek avoided becoming another upset casualty by adjusting her game.

Swiatek hit 44 winners to 36 unforced errors, converted five of 13 break points and outpointed McNally 102-83.

“I started the match well, so I knew that my game was there,” Swiatek said during her on-court interview. “Then, I lost it for a second and made some errors that shouldn’t have happened. I knew that at the beginning of the second set that I had to be more intense. I just tried to improve and pretended like it was a practice and it worked.”

The former World No. 1 has not lost before the third round of a major since the 2019 US Open. She improved to 23-2 in Grand Slam second-round matches and has become the third player since 2000 to reach the round of 32 in 22 consecutive major appearances, joining Amelie Mauresmo and Serena Williams.

Next, Swiatek will face 54th-ranked American Danielle Collins, whom she leads 7-2 in their head-to-head but has never played on grass. Collins advanced to the third round after defeating 171st-ranked Veronika Erjavec of Slovenia, 6-4, 6-1, in 52 minutes on Court 16.

Djokovic continues his quest for 25 major titles

It’s obvious that former World No. 1 Novak Djokovic is in it for the long run. As the 38-year-old Serbian superstar continues to chase after the elusive, record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title, the seven-time Wimbledon titlist opened play on Centre Court Thursday afternoon against former British No. 1 and sentimental favorite Daniel Evans in a compelling second-round tussle.

On paper, Djokovic, who has been stuck on 24 majors since winning the 2023 US Open, entered as the pre-match favorite. He’s always been a fan of Evans, saying: “He uses his slice quite a lot and that favors grass courts because the ball stays low. He can serve and volley, chips the ball, comes in, mixes up the pace. A really tricky opponent you don’t want in your draw in the early rounds.”

Before taking court, Evans, 35, said of his dream of reaching a first Grand Slam quarterfinal: “I still believe I have a shot.”

By the end of their one-hour, 47-minute match, however, it was all Djokovic. He won comfortably over the 154th-ranked Evans, 6-3, 6-2, 6-0, to advance to the third round. Djokovic’s victory avenged a 2021 loss to Evans at Monte-Carlo.

As it happened, Djokovic played steady from first ball to last ball, winning 89 percent (40 of 45) of his first-serve points, hit 46 winners – including 11 aces – made only 14 unforced errors, saved both break points he faced and broke Evans six times in 16 opportunities. He outpointed his opponent 97-52.

“I think everyone knew that it was going to be a special atmosphere today on the court,” Djokovic said in his on-court interview. “Obviously a Brit in Britain is never easy to face. ‘Tricky’ is maybe not a great word, but he’s a good quality player who possesses a lot of talent, a lot of touch, and for the grass, where the ball stays very low with his slice, he can be causing a lot of trouble to you if you are not on top of your game, which I think I was, to be honest, from the very beginning.”

Djokovic is now tops – ahead of Roger Federer – for most men’s singles third-round appearances at Wimbledon with 19. He’s now 99-12 at the All England Club, third-best behind Martina Navratilova and Federer.

“It means that I’ve been playing quite a long time,” Djokovic joked. “Nineteen times. That’s a great stat. It’s probably almost as much as Sinner and Alcaraz have as years in their life, but I still enjoy it. This sport has given me so much. … Wimbledon remains the most special tournament in my heart, the one that I always dreamed of winning when I was a kid, so any history made here is obviously extra special for me.

“It’s the beginning of the tournament, so while I’m aware of the history on the line and am privileged position to do that, at the same time I am thinking about the big things I can do at this tournament.”

Djokovic will be back on court Saturday going after Wimbledon win No. 100 – likely Centre Court out of respect – where he will face fellow Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic, ranked 49th, who eliminated 106th-ranked Jesper de Jong of the Netherlands, 1-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4, in two hours and 15 minutes on Court 15.

Sinner remains perfect through first two rounds

World No. 1 and top seed Jannik Sinner of Italy has yet to drop a set through the first two rounds of the British fortnight. On Thursday evening, he needed just one hour and 40 minutes to wrap up a 6-1, 6-1, 6-3 victory over No. 93 Aleksandar Vukic of Australia on Centre Court.

The victory advanced Sinner to face Spaniard Pedro Martinez in Saturday’s third round. He’s through to the third round at Wimbledon for the fourth straight year.

Although Sinner let slip five match points on serve at 5-3 in the third set, he saved his fourth break point with a remarkable forehand passing shot, then struck consecutive aces to close out the victory. Sinner finished with 38 winners – including 12 aces – and converted six of nine break points. He outpointed Vukic 92-53.

“I enjoyed it because I won the game,” a smiling Sinner said during his on-court interview in describing the final game of the second-round match. “The match can change very quickly. If he breaks me there, it could go a long distance, so I’m very happy to finish. [Playing on] Centre Court is such a special occasion.”

As Sinner seeks to win his fourth major, he said: “Every opponent is very difficult, third-round matches in Grand Slams are something special. As we saw, there have been many upsets this tournament, so we try to stay focused and raise our level. I felt the level was at a good point today, but I can improve a couple of things.”

Around the All England Club

Men:

• Unseeded and 83rd-ranked Marin Cilic of Croatia ended World No. 4 and fourth-seeded Jack Draper‘s Wimbledon hopes, ousting the British No. 1 with a 6-4, 6-3, 1-6, 6-4 victory in two hours and 39 minutes on No. 1 Court Thursday evening.

The 36-year-old Croatian, a 2017 Wimbledon finalist but who has not competed at the All England Club since 2021 due to injuries, won behind a big-hitting attack that featured 53 winners – including 16 aces. Cilic outpointed Draper 113-100 by the end of the second-round match.

“To come back and play at this kind of level in front of this crowd and against Jack is just incredible,” Cilic said during his on-court interview. “Emotions are just incredible, from where I was two years ago, it’s been a long journey. I never lost any doubt. I’ve been really dedicated to training.”

Cilic, who won an ATP Challenger Tour title in Nottingham two weeks ago, extended his winning streak to seven matches and improved his lifetime win-loss record at Wimbledon to 33-13.

Next, Cilic will play No. 55 Jaume Munar of Spain, who advanced over No. 58 Fabian Marozsan of Hungary, 6-2, 6-3, 7-6 (9), in two hours and 17 minutes on Court 14.

• No. 11 seed Alex de Minaur needed a set to get on track but rallied well to earn a 4-6, 6-2, 6-4, 6-0 victory over No. 115 Arthur Cazaux of France, in two hours and 48 minutes on No. 2 Court. A quarterfinalist last year, De Minaur struck 25 winners, converted seven of 20 break points and won 26 of 30 net points. He outpointed Cazaux 123-94 to advance to the third round against 192nd-ranked Danish qualifier August Holmgren, who needed four hours and 39 minutes to overcome No. 21 seed Tomas Machac of Czechia, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (8), 6-7 (5), 7-5, 7-6 (5).

• No. 15 seed Jakub Mensik of Czechia won a spirited 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (4) second-round match over No. 45 Marcos Giron of the United States in two hours and 51 minutes on Court 12 to equal his best run in a major. At 19, he’s the youngest Czech man into the third round at Wimbledon since Tomas Berdych in 2005.

Mensik hit 54 winners – including 26 aces – and outpointed Giron 132-126. Next, Mensik will play No. 22 Flavio Cobolli of Italy, who ended the run of 281st-ranked British wild card Jack Pinnington Jones, 6-1, 7-6 (6), 6-2, in one hour and 55 minutes on Court 18, in back of 38 winners.

• No. 19 seed Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria needed four sets and three hours and 38 minutes to defeat No. 69 Corentin Moutet of France, 7-5, 4-6, 7-5, 7-5, on No. 3 Court to advance to the third round. Dimitrov hit 64 winners to offset 48 unforced errors and outpointed Moutet 152-135. Next, he will face 165th-ranked Austrian Sebastian Ofner, who upset No. 13 seed Tommy Paul of the United States, 1-6, 7-5, 6-4, 7-5, in two hours and 55 minutes. Ofner overcame 49 unforced errors to hit 37 winners and outpointed Paul 128-127.

• No. 24 seed Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada was upset by 125th-ranked Jan-Lennard Struff of Germany, 3-6, 7-6 (9), 6-3, 6-4, in three hours and 11 minutes on Court 18, a match that was suspended by darkness on Wednesday after the completion of two sets. Struff hit 10 aces and 40 winners overall, and broke Auger-Aliassime’s serve five times in 14 tries. He outpointed his opponent 143-138. Next, Struff will face two-time defending champion and No. 2 seed Carlos Alcaraz of Spain Friday on Centre Court.

• No. 27 seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain won the resumption of his second-round match against No. 92 Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands, 6-1, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (5), in three hours and seven minutes on Court 6. He struck 46 winners, won 37 of 49 net-points exchanges and outpointed van de Zandschulp 144-118. Next, Davidovich Fokina will play No. 5 seed Taylor Fritz of the United States.

Women:

• No. 11 seed and 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan needed just 62 minutes to advance to the third round after defeating No. 77 Maria Sakkari of Greece, 6-3, 6-1, on No. 1 Court. It was her fifth career win against the Greek star. This time, Rybakina won by dropping just two points on her first serve, hit 23 winners and converted five of eight break points. She outpointed Sakkari 59-36. Next, she will face either No. 23 seed Clara Tauson of Denmark or No. 39 Anna Kalinskaya of Russia.

• Zeynep Sonmez, ranked 88th in the world, became the first player from Turkey to reach the third round in singles at a Grand Slam in the Open Era. Thursday afternoon on Court 17, the 23-year-old from Istanbul upset No. 32 Wang Xinyu of China, 7-5, 7-5, in one hour and 55 minutes to advance against No. 18 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova of Russia. Alexandrova defeated No. 69 Suzan Lamens of the Netherlands, 6-4, 6-0, in just 54 minutes on Court 18.

Thursday’s Wimbledon results

Friday’s Wimbledon order of play

By the numbers

A Wimbledon record-tying 23 seeded players – 13 men and 10 women – were ousted by the end of the first round on Tuesday, equaling the most at any Grand Slam event in the past 25 years. On Wednesday, five more seeded women were added to the casualty list: No. 4 Jasmine Paolini, No. 12 Diana Shnaider, No. 21 Beatriz Haddad Maia, No. 22 Donna Vekic and No. 29 Leylah Fernandez.

The shakeup at the top of the draw leaves just six seeded players, including top seed Aryna Sabalenka, who quipped on Wednesday that she would love it if the upsets at Wimbledon would stop.

“Quotable …”

“I have to give praise to Oliver, his second match on the Tour. I just love his game to be honest. The level he played in the first match on Centre Court, which I know is really difficult, he showed great tennis. I knew at the beginning I had to be really focused, had to play my best tennis. Today I played just great tennis and I am really happy with my game today.”

– Two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, during his on-court interview after defeating 733rd-ranked British qualifier Oliver Tarvet,  6-1, 6-4, 6-4, Wednesday on Centre Court.

 

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