Three British players win, but 14 lose in Wimbledon first round
Three Britons advanced to the second round at Wimbledon, but a record 14 home players lost in the first round – the most since 1994.
Three British tennis players won their first-round matches at Wimbledon, while 14 home players suffered opening-round defeats, the highest number since 1994. On the first day of the tournament, 10 British losses were the most recorded at SW19 since daily records began in 2000.
Katie Swan, who considered retiring in 2024 due to a persistent back injury, defeated Romania's Irina-Camelia Begu 6-4, 6-4. It was her first Grand Slam main-draw win since beating the same opponent at Wimbledon in 2018. Arthur Fery fought back from a set down to beat Bosnia's Damir Dzumhur 3-6, 6-2, 6-2, 6-1. Jacob Fearnley, ranked 159th, came from two sets down to defeat American Alex Michelsen 3-6, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 in three and a half hours.
Among those who lost was British No. 1 Katie Boulter, who was beaten 6-2, 6-4 by 18-year-old Italian qualifier Tyra Caterina Grant. Boulter, who 18 days earlier had scored the biggest win of her career against world No. 2 Elena Rybakina, did not earn a single break point. Jack Pinnington Jones, Billy Harris, and debutant Harry Wendelken also fell on Tuesday. Pinnington Jones lost to 28th seed Brandon Nakashima, Harris was beaten by 19th seed Karen Khachanov, and Wendelken lost to France's Valentin Royer.
