admin Iga Swiatek’s Wimbledon title defence went up in smoke as the Polish third seed fell 7-6(9) 6-2 to rising Filipina Alexandra Eala in the third round after a fierce gladiatorial battle at the All England Club on Saturday.
Last year’s triumph ended years of questions about Swiatek’s ability to master the sport’s fastest surface, yet the 25-year-old arrived at the All England Club following an early defeat in the Bad Homburg tune-up tournament and still searching for consistency.
After battling past Taylor Townsend and sealing an assured win over Karolina Pliskova in her last two rounds, Swiatek came up against an inspired Eala in their Centre Court showdown and fell short under the blazing afternoon sun.
After suffering a shock defeat to Eala in Miami last year, Swiatek gained revenge when they met again on the clay of Madrid but the Pole found herself in trouble after losing a high-octane opening set in which both players gave the other no quarter.
Swiatek smiled at the end of the set but was soon shouting at her entourage in the stands, before slamming her racket on a chair, while fan favourite Eala soaked up roaring applause from a thoroughly entertained crowd.
Left-hander Eala, whose powerful baseline shot-making rattled Swiatek early in the clash, ramped up the pressure at the start of the next set and earned a double break to go 3-0 up, before her opponent began to show signs of life again.
Swiatek retrieved a break but dropped serve again as Eala staved off the late comeback attempt and delivered the knockout blow in the form of a forehand winner to set up an intriguing fourth-round clash with 2024 runner-up Jasmine Paolini.
Rybakina crashes out
Former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina also suffered a shock third-round exit in a 7-6 (7/4), 6-1 defeat against Elise Mertens on Saturday.
Rybakina was hoping to follow her Australian Open triumph in January by winning Wimbledon for the second time.
But the world number two was unable to emulate her 2022 victory at the All England Club as Belgian 25th seed Mertens produced a major upset on Court One.
Rybakina, 27, also endured a disappointing early departure from the recent French Open, losing to Yuliia Starodubtseva in the second round.
The Russia-born Kazakhstani, who beat Ons Jabeur to win Wimbledon four years ago, has failed to make it past the third round on her last two visits to south-west London.
Mertens is a two-time Wimbledon doubles champion and has now reached the last 16 in the All England Club singles on four occasions.
She will play Czech 21st seed Marie Bouzkova for a place in the quarter-finals.
The 30-year-old’s best run in a Grand Slam singles tournament is a 2018 Australian Open semi-final appearance.
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