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Wimbledon 2024 Results: Defending Champion Marketa Vondrousova Loses to Jessica Bouzas Maneiro

Posted on by angelo

Video caption, Defending champion Vondrousova beaten by Bouzas Maneiro in first round

  • Author, Emily Salley
  • Role, BBC Sport reporter at Wimbledon

Marketa Vondrousova’s Wimbledon title defence came to a premature end when she lost in the first round to Spaniard Jessica Bouzas Maneiro.

The Czech became the first unseeded player to lift the women’s singles trophy when she triumphed against Ons Jabeur in last year’s final.

But Vondrousova’s game was riddled with unforced errors and double faults, with the 25-year-old starting the match with a poor performance on Centre Court.

World number 83 Bouzas Maneiro, 21, took advantage on Tuesday to win 6-4 6-2 and claim her first Grand Slam victory.

It is the first time since 1994, when Steffi Graf lost to Lori McNeil, that the defending champion has lost in the first round at Wimbledon.

“I’m really happy, I think it’s one of the most important moments of my life, of my career,” said Bouzas Maneiro.

“This is the best tournament I have ever played in my life, so thank you to everyone who came to watch the match today.”

Vondrousova’s early exit means there will be a different women’s singles champion for a seventh consecutive year and she is the first defending champion in 30 years to lose in the first round.

Serena Williams was the last player to successfully defend the Venus Rosewater Dish, winning back-to-back titles in 2015 and 2016.

Video caption, ‘A very professional performance’ – Swiatek’s best shots as she beats Kenin

World number one Iga Swiatek had no worries as she claimed a comfortable 6-3 6-4 victory over 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin.

The American saw her serve broken in her first game by the 23-year-old Pole, who has already won five Grand Slam titles but has never made it past the quarter-finals at Wimbledon.

In the second round, Swiatek will face Croatian Petra Martic, who beat British Fran Jones in three sets.

Meanwhile, 2018 Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki beat world number 40 Alycia Parks 6-2, 6-0 in just 53 minutes.

The 33-year-old Dane has never made it past the fourth round at Wimbledon but looked comfortable against her American opponent.

Last year’s defeated finalist Ons Jabeur also came through without any problems, winning her match against Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima 6-3 6-1 in 55 minutes.

Video caption, ‘Like a witch’ – Jabeur hits winning shot in comfortable victory

“It was like playing house”

Vondrousova entered the tournament on the back of a serious injury after a nasty fall forced her to retire early with a hip problem following her second-round match at the Berlin Open.

The sixth seed appeared to be feeling the after-effects of the problem, moving with difficulty.

Bouzas Maneiro capitalized on Vondrousova’s physical struggles, breaking early in each of the first and second sets before hitting a sublime backhand down the line winner on her first match point.

“I was just trying to enjoy the moment,” the Spaniard said. “She’s one of the best players in the world here, she won last year, so I thought: I have no pressure, I’m enjoying the moment, I’m enjoying the tournament.”

“I’m really surprised with myself. At first I was a little nervous, but since the first match, I don’t know, the atmosphere was so nice, so elegant.

“I felt good playing here, I felt like I was playing at home.”

Vondrousova also said she “felt nervousness from the beginning” and was “a little scared” following her recent injury.

She added: “I owe her credit. She played a good game too. I didn’t feel my best. I think she didn’t give me a lot of points for free.”

Bouzas Maneiro will face her compatriot Cristina Bucsa in the second round.

Pegula advances to second round after 49-minute win

Image source, Getty Images

Legend, Jessica Pegula hits 17 winners against world number 75 Krueger

Earlier, world number five Jessica Pegula advanced to the second round of Wimbledon with a 49-minute victory over fellow American Ashlyn Krueger.

Pegula dispatched her 20-year-old opponent 6-2 6-0, wrapping up the victory before rain halted play on the outdoor courts.

The fifth seed, who won her first WTA grass-court title in Berlin last month, has never advanced beyond the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam.

Pegula, 30, will next face China’s Wang Xinyu after defeating Viktoriya Tomova.

Meanwhile, 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina claimed a resounding 6-3 6-1 victory over Romania’s Elena-Gabriela Ruse under the closed roof of Court One.

“I’m really happy to win my first match here this year,” said No. 4 seed Rybakina, who has battled illness this season. “I haven’t played much on grass this year because I had some problems.

“I keep all my emotions inside me. Sometimes it’s not easy, but I’m looking forward to the next one. I just want to be happy on the pitch, that’s my goal now.”

American Danielle Collins, seeded No. 11, won the first set against Denmark’s Clara Tauson, but their match on No. 10 Court was suspended as the lights faded and the grass surface became slippery.