American teenager Coco Gauff was the first big-name casualty at Wimbledon after losing a high-quality match against a resurgent Sofia Kenin.
Seventh seed Gauff lost 6-4 2-6 6-4 in the first round to qualifier Kenin, who has dropped down the rankings since winning the 2020 Australian Open.
Kenin, who has been hampered by injuries and upheaval in her coaching set-up, said she felt “super proud”.
Top seed Iga Swiatek laid down a marker with a 6-1 6-3 win over Zhu Lin.
When the Wimbledon draw was made on Friday, Gauff being handed one of the trickiest draws possible – against a former Grand Slam champion looking to reignite her career – instantly caught the eye as a potential shock.
Gauff knew the danger posed by 24-year-old Kenin and her wariness proved correct as she lost in the first round at the All England Club for the first time.
The 19-year-old burst on to the scene at Wimbledon in 2019 when, as a 15-year-old phenomenon, she came through qualifying before shocking five-time champion Venus Williams on
her way to the last 16.
That success led to bold predictions of how
many Grand Slams she would go on to win and, even though lifting one of the sport’s biggest prizes has not yet materialised, the world number seven was expected to go far at a major tournament
where she has previously done well.
However, she was out powered by an inspired Kenin who showed why she was one of the WTA Tour’s rising stars only a few years ago.
“I knew it was going to be a tough first round
for me. I tried my best, but it wasn’t enough. I
think I have a lot to work on if I want to improve from this,” said Gauff.
Former world number four Kenin targeted Gauff’s weaker forehand and maintained an aggressive approach throughout with clean ball striking.
“Obviously this means a lot. I feel like this year has been not necessarily lows, but I feel like it’s
a comeback year for me,” said 128th-ranked
Kenin, who also reached the Roland Garros final in 2020.
“I feel like I started off the year well, I was playing well. I had a good feeling that this year would be a good year for me.”
Meanwhile, veteran Williams says a dramatic fall that ruined her hopes of a notable Wimbledon win was ‘painful’ and has left her ‘in shock’.
Williams, 43, slipped early in the first-round match against Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina, leading
to fears she might have to retire injured.
The five-time champion did continue and
pushed Svitolina before losing 6-4 6-3.
“It was bad luck for me. I can’t believe it
happened. I’m still trying to process it,” Williams said.
Williams, who started the match with heavy strapping on her right knee, showed undiminishing determination and courage to fight through her fitness problems before succumbing to 2019 semi-finalist Svitolina.