Jessica Pegula was on top of the tennis world on Saturday as she stood on Center Court in Bad Homburg, Germany.
She had just won the title — the ninth of her career and second on grass — following a dominant week and 6-4, 7-5 final performance against Iga Swiatek. The world No. 3 arrived to Wimbledon just hours later as one of the favorites to win the Venus Rosewater dish at the All England Club.
But on Tuesday, Pegula’s hopes for a first major title, or even a substantial run, came crashing down as she lost in the first round to Elisabetta Cocciaretto, 6-2, 6-3 in just 58 minutes.
“It’s really a bummer to lose,” a disappointed Pegula said after the match. “I haven’t lost first round of a slam in a very long time, so that sucks.”
But Pegula was hardly the only top player to lose in the wildly unpredictable opening round at the All England Club. In fact, she wasn’t even the only top-three women’s player to lose, as Coco Gauff, the No. 2 seed and recently crowned French Open champion, followed suit by the day’s end. Nor was Pegula the only No. 3 seed to lose on Tuesday as Alexander Zverev later joined her as well.
Ultimately, eight top-10 seeds — four women and four men — were eliminated during the first two days of play, setting the record for most ever at a major in the Open Era. It’s also the first time two of the top three women lost in the opening round of a Slam in the Open Era.
And on the men’s side, 13 seeded players failed to advance to the second round — tying the mark previously set at the 2004 Australian Open since the current seeding format began in 2001. (That number could get even higher as No. 29 Brandon Nakashima’s match was suspended due to the curfew on Tuesday night and set to conclude on Wednesday.)
“Upsets are contagious,” Brad Gilbert, former player and current coach, said on the broadcast on Tuesday. “If you’re seeded, be wary before you leave that locker room.”
So, exactly who went home early? And what do their exits mean for those remaining in the draw? We break it down.
Women
No. 2 Coco Gauff
Lost to Dayana Yastremska, 7-6 (3), 6-1
Just weeks after winning the second career major of her career at the French Open, all eyes were on the 21-year-old Gauff at Wimbledon. Although she had never advanced past the fourth round at the All England Club and had lost in the opening-round match of her lone lead-in event on grass in Berlin, she was still among the favorites to win the title.
But it was not to be. Playing in the final match of the day on No. 1 Court, after being originally scheduled on Centre Court, Gauff initially went down 5-2 in the opening set before finding a way to fight back and force a tiebreak. But Yastremska outplayed her from there on out and never allowed Gauff a chance to get back into it.
Gauff increasingly struggled with her serve and with her nerves — with nine double faults and 29 unforced errors on the day — and Yastremska remained aggressive throughout the match. Gauff later told reporters she had been “a little overwhelmed” with all of the attention that came after her triumph in Paris and simply hadn’t had enough time to properly prepare.
“It’s the first time in this experience of coming off a win and having to play Wimbledon,” Gauff said. “I definitely learned a lot of what I would and would not do again.
“But yeah, I mean, also she played great. I mean, I saw the draw and knew it would be a tough match for me … I had chances, but yeah, it is what it is.”
Wimbledon remains the only major in which Gauff hasn’t reached the quarterfinals.
Yastremska, currently ranked No. 42, had a fourth-round appearance at the All England Club in 2019 and made the semifinals at the Australian Open in 2024. She will next face qualifier Anastasia Zakharova in the second round on Thursday. Gauff’s exit could be favorable for No. 28 seed Sofia Kenin, who potentially would have played her in the third round, as well as for either No. 16 Daria Kasatkina or No. 19 Liudmila Samsonova, who would have been possible fourth-round opponents. Iga Swiatek, the No. 8 seed, and Elena Rybakina, the No. 11 seed and 2022 Wimbledon champion, are now the clear favorites to win the quarter.
No. 3 Jessica Pegula
Lost to Elisabetta Cocciaretto, 6-2, 6-3
Entering the match, Pegula hadn’t lost in the first round at a Slam since 2020 and had been one of the most consistent players at majors over the past several seasons. Few thought the No. 116-ranked Cocciaretto — who Pegula beat in their lone previous meeting at Wimbledon in 2023 — would be the one to hand her earliest exit in over five years or stop her current grass momentum.
But Cocciaretto played “absolutely incredible tennis,” according to Pegula, and became the first Italian player to beat a top-3 seed at Wimbledon in the Open Era.
“Do I think I played the best match ever? No. But I definitely don’t think I was playing bad. It wasn’t like I was playing that bad,” Pegula said. “She just was hitting her shots and going for it, serving big, serving high percentage, going big second serves, redirecting the ball. It was just her day, I honestly think.”
Cocciaretto will now play Katie Volynets, another American, in the second round on Thursday and will look to reach the Round of 32 at the All England Club for the second time in her career. While it’s a great opportunity for both Cocciaretto and Volynets, it also makes the path to the second week potentially easier for No. 18 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova, the likely third-round opponent. Pegula’s exit makes Mirra Andreeva the highest seed remaining in their quarter of the draw at No. 7 — and could also be welcome news to Swiatek, who is in the same half of the draw, after their lopsided Bad Homburg meeting.
No. 5 Zheng Qinwen
Lost to Katerina Siniakova, 7-5, 4-6, 6-1
The 22-year-old Zheng has won Olympic gold — as well as reached the Australian Open final and the quarterfinals at the French Open and US Open over the past two years — but simply has not had the same success at the All England Club or on grass. While she reached the third round in her debut at the tournament in 2022, Tuesday marked her third-consecutive first-round exit at Wimbledon.
Siniakova, currently ranked No. 81 in singles but the world No. 1 in doubles, had previously beaten Zheng twice on grass but fell into a 5-3 deficit in the opening set on Tuesday. However, she fought back and found a way to claim the first set. Zheng raised her level in the second set, but the decider was all Siniakova, who jumped out to a 5-0 lead.
“I just think if I could do it better, my service game, and put more first serve on court today, I could have [had] more chances to [have] won the match,” Zheng said later. “Especially when it’s my service game, I give her too many chances, and she break me in the early third set. I think that’s very dangerous, you know, to play on grass, because you don’t get too much chance to come back… I think she played good. I didn’t play good enough today. I gave her a lot of easy mistakes.”
Siniakova, a three-time Wimbledon doubles champion, will now face four-time major winner Naomi Osaka in the second round. Neither has ever advanced past the third round at the tournament but the winner would have the chance to do just that against either No. 31 seed Ashlyn Krueger or Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. No. 4 seed Jasmine Paolini is the only top-10 seed remaining in their quarter of the draw and Siniakova/Osaka/Krueger/Pavlyuchenkova would only potentially meet her in the quarterfinals. Could this be Osaka’s time to make a deep run at Wimbledon? Stay tuned.
No. 9 Paula Badosa
Lost to Katie Boulter, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4
Playing on Centre Court against the British No. 2 player (and No. 43 in the world), Badosa knew it wasn’t going to be easy to advance to the second round. And the two battled for nearly two hours in front of a rapt crowd on Monday, with Boulter pulling away in the decider.
Boulter, who previously had a 3-16 record against top-10 players, later called it one of the “best wins” of her career.
“Centre Court Wimbledon, as a Brit, against a Top 10 player, for me doesn’t get that much better,” Boulter said. “It is one of the reasons why I do play tennis, to win matches like that, and to have a go at the best in the world.”
Boulter will next take on lucky loser Solana Sierra, currently ranked No. 101, on Wednesday. Boulter or Sierra will then take on No. 22 seed Donna Vekic or Cristina Bucsa in the third round. Madison Keys, the No. 6 seed and reigning Australian Open champion, would likely await that winner in the fourth round. Through one round, it seems the projected quarterfinal clash between Keys and No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka remains on track.
Other seeded women who lost in the first round: No. 15 Karolina Muchova, No. 20 Jelena Ostapenko, No. 25 Magdalena Frech, No. 26 Marta Kostyuk, No. 32 McCartney Kessler
Men
No. 3 Alexander Zverev
Lost to Arthur Rinderknech, 7-6 (3), 6-7 (8), 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-4
While he had never previously made it past the fourth round, Zverev had arrived to Wimbledon having reached the final and the semifinals at his two lead-in events on grass. He looked poised for a strong run, and perhaps his best-ever result at the All England Club, as the tournament got underway.
But Rinderknech, a 29-year-old currently ranked No. 72, had other plans.
In a match that started on Monday but was suspended due to the curfew and concluded on Tuesday, Rinderknech dominated at the net — winning 44 of 55 points — and controlled the pace and momentum for much of the match. After four hours and 40 minutes of play, Rinderknech won the biggest match of his life, and Zverev maintained his status as the man many, including Andy Roddick, consider the best player on tour to have never won a major.
“I don’t even know where to start,” an exhausted Rinderknech told the crowd moments later. “It starts for sure with the crowd because I’m feeling the same way as you guys… Just happy the match is finished.”
Rinderknech won’t have much time to rest as he will take on lucky loser Cristian Garin on Wednesday. The section of the draw now is relatively wide open with No. 17 seed Karen Khachanov as the only seeded player remaining in that half of the quarter, and with No. 5 seed Taylor Fritz as the only player seeded in the top 10 left in the quarter overall.
No. 7 Lorenzo Musetti
Lost to Nikoloz Basilashvili, 6-2, 4-6, 7-5, 6-1
After reaching the first major semifinal of his career at Wimbledon in 2024, and coming off another semifinal run at the French Open last month, expectations were high for the 23-year-old Musetti as the tournament got underway. But due to a leg injury sustained in Paris, Musetti hadn’t been able to play in any grass-court events prior to Wimbledon — and the rust showed on Monday.
“I was struggling to feel comfortable on the court from the beginning,” Musetti said after the loss. “Going and going with the match, I was really losing focus and was not reactive on the ball when I was coming out from the serve. Even in the lateral movements, which normally I know how to move, today seems like I never played on this surface. A really bad performance I would say.”
Basilashvili, a former top-20 player now ranked No. 126 and having come through qualifying, had 48 winners and needed just two hours and 25 minutes to secure the victory.
The 33-year-old Basilashvili will now face another Italian in Lorenzo Sonego on Wednesday. Reilly Opelka, the 2015 Wimbledon junior champion, or the winner of No. 29 seed Brandon Nakashima and Bu Yunchaokete’s first-round match would be waiting in the third round. This could be favorable news for No. 10 seed Ben Shelton, who potentially could face one of these players in the fourth round with a chance to advance to his first Wimbledon quarterfinal.
No. 8 Holger Rune
Lost to Nicolas Jarry, 4-6, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4
For two sets on Monday, it looked as if Rune, a 2023 Wimbledon quarterfinalist, would cruise into the second round. And even as Jarry, a qualifier ranked No. 143, raised his level and ultimately forced a decider, the odds certainly still favored Rune — Jarry had never won a five-set match before and was riding a seven-match major losing streak.
But none of that mattered on Monday.
Rune called for a trainer in the fourth set due to a lingering right knee injury and cited that partially for the loss later. He couldn’t hide his disappointment when speaking to reporters after the match.
“I mean, if I play normal, I’m beating him nine out of ten times, with all respect for Nicolas Jarry,” Rune said. “Obviously today didn’t make it a lot easier with my knee, but yeah, it was not great.”
Jarry will now play American Learner Tien with a chance to reach the third round at Wimbledon for the second time in his career, where American Jenson Brooksby or teenage phenom Joao Fonseca would await. Perhaps no one benefits more from Rune’s loss more than No. 12 seed Frances Tiafoe, who would presumably have played Rune in the fourth round. Fresh off his first French Open quarterfinal appearance, he could now have an even better chance to reach the quarters at Wimbledon for the first time as well.
No. 9 Daniil Medvedev
Lost to Benjamin Bonzi, 7-6 (2), 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-2
It’s been a tough season for Medvedev, the former No. 1 and 2021 US Open champion. In the three majors so far this season, he’s won just one match (at the Australian Open) and has been handed consecutive first-round exits.
Having reached the previous two Wimbledon semifinals, it wasn’t exactly what he had hoped for his 2025 run at the All England Club.
On Monday against Bonzi, the world No. 64, Medvedev was handed his earliest exit ever at the tournament in seven appearances. He later told reporters he wasn’t “too worried” about his recent major results, or the state of his game or ranking, and seemed ready for the next phase of the season.
“I’m for sure very disappointed about the fact that I lost [but] it’s okay,” Medvedev said. “Now hard courts. If I manage to play like I did in Halle, honestly even like I did today, I do feel like I can come back to top 10. It’s a matter of one result, right? I played good in Halle, I’m back in top 10. Played bad here, I’m out of top 10.”
Bonzi is now into the second round at Wimbledon for the third time but has never advanced beyond the round. He will have the chance to do just that against Jordan Thompson on Wednesday — and would have the opportunity to go even further as wild card Arthur Fery or Luciano Darderi would await in the Round of 32. With Medvedev and Zverev’s exits, Fritz is now the overwhelming favorite to win his quarter of the draw.
Other seeded men who lost in the first round: No. 16 Francisco Cerundolo, No. 18 Ugo Humbert, No. 20 Alexei Popyrin, No. 24 Stefanos Tsitsipas (retired with injury), No. 27 Denis Shapovalov, No. 28 Alexander Bublik, No. 30 Alex Michelsen, No. 31 Tallon Griekspoor, No. 32 Matteo Berrettini
