Elena Rybakina, the second seed at Wimbledon and the 2022 tournament champion, suffered an early exit in a straight-sets loss to Elise Mertens. The match, which took place on Court One, ended with a 7-6 (7-4) 6-1 scoreline in favor of the Belgian player.
This outcome marks the second year in a row that Rybakina, who also claimed the Australian Open title earlier this year, has been unable to progress past the first week of the grass-court Grand Slam. As a result of this defeat, Aryna Sabalenka is guaranteed to retain her position as the women’s world number one, irrespective of her own future performance in the event.
Elise Mertens, a two-time Wimbledon doubles champion, expressed her relief and joy following the victory, acknowledging the difficulty of playing against a former titleholder. She is now set to face Marie Bouzkova in the fourth round after the Czech 21st seed overcame Liudmila Samsonova in their respective match.
