Co-favorite Sabalenka withdraws, defending champion Vondrousova loses. Wimbledon has to do without its next title contender early on. Steffi Graf is the last to experience what happened to Vondrousova
For defending champion Marketa Vondrousova, this year’s Wimbledon is already over after the first round. The Czech tennis player was surprisingly beaten 4:6, 2:6 by Spanish outsider Jessica Bouzas Maneiro and became the first defending Wimbledon champion since 1994 to be knocked out right at the start. Back then, German tennis idol Steffi Graf, the world number one, was surprisingly defeated by Lori McNeil (USA).
During her Wimbledon preparations, Vondrousova had retired from the tournament in Berlin after injuring her hip. The left-hander left the court in Berlin in tears. The world number six subsequently canceled her planned participation in Bad Homburg.
With her withdrawal, Wimbledon is over for another co-favorite. Earlier, Belarusian Australian Open winner Aryna Sabalenka had already had to give up her title hopes. She withdrew at short notice due to a shoulder injury
