The transition from clay to grass is a difficult one, with only three weeks between the end of the French Open and the start of Wimbledon. This year’s edition of the grass court Major has been marked by upsets and the first round hasn’t even concluded yet.
There were six WTA-level tournaments held on grass in order to help players prepare for Wimbledon. There were no repeat winners or finalists, with six different players being crowned champions over the past three weeks.
Four of those six champions failed to cross the first hurdle at Wimbledon. One would expect players to sustain their winning momentum for at least a round or two but that wasn’t the case this year. Here’s a look at the four players who crashed out in the first round of Wimbledon 2025 despite winning a warm-up event in recent weeks:
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#4. Tatjana Maria
Tatjana Maria had one of the most memorable title runs in recent times. She started her grass swing with a bang, taking out some of the biggest names in the business to claim the biggest title of her career at Queen's Club. She came through the qualifying rounds and took out former US Open finalist Leylah Fernandez in the first round.
Maria then eliminated Karolina Muchova and Elena Rybakina, both top 20 players, to make the semifinals. She beat reigning Australian Open champion Madison Keys in straight sets and wrapped up her incredible week with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Amanda Anisimova in the final.
There was a bit of a letdown in her next tournament, losing to Fernandez in the first round of the Bad Homburg Open. Maria was still expected to win her first-round match against Katie Volynets at Wimbledon. The former was a semifinalist at SW19 in 2022, while the latter was seeking her first win at the venue.
Maria captured the first set and even served for the match at 5-4 in the second set. However, she failed to wrap up the proceedings, throwing Volynets a lifeline. The latter made the most of the reprieve and eventually scored a 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-1 comeback win, bringing an end to the German's time on grass.
#3. Maya Joint
Maya Joint claimed the second title of her career and her first on grass at the Eastbourne Open, a couple of days before the start of Wimbledon. She saved four championship points against Alexandra Eala in the final as well. Many felt it was the teenager's time to make a breakthrough at the Majors following her recent triumph.
To be fair, going up against Liudmila Samsonova on grass, especially in the first round of Wimbledon, is a tall order. It was a tough opener for Joint but given her form, people were confident of her pulling off a potential upset. However, it wasn't meant to be and the Aussie teen slumped to a 6-3, 6-2 defeat, thus eliminating another one of this year's grass court champions from Wimbledon.
#2. McCartney Kessler
McCartney Kessler won the Nottingham Open in the lead-up to Wimbledon. Her first-round opponent at the All England Club was Marketa Vondrousova, who won the Berlin Tennis Open a couple of weeks ago.
Vondrousova also reigned supreme at Wimbledon in 2023, claiming her first and only Major title so far. This match-up ensured that at least one player who won a title in the lead-up to the grass court Major would be out in the first round.
It was Kessler who came up short, going down 6-1, 7-6 (3). This was a rather tough first-round assignment for her, and she would've probably beaten most other unseeded players apart from Vondrousova.
#1. Jessica Pegula
Many expected World No. 3 Jessica Pegula to make a deep run at Wimbledon after her recent victory at the Bad Homburg Open. She beat a couple of top 10 players, Emma Navarro and Iga Swiatek, to win her second career title on grass in the lead-up to Wimbledon.
Pegula was up against No. 116 Elisabetta Cocciaretto in the first round. Given the vast gulf in the rankings, this was expected to be an easy opener for the American. It turned out to be anything but routine.
Cocciaretto played one of her best matches in a long time to score one of the first big upsets of the tournament. She ran circles around the third seed, who couldn't even create a single break point opportunity, to beat her 6-2, 6-3.
Pegula had no answers to the questions posed by her opponent, making this another underwhelming campaign at a Major this year. Since her runner-up finish at last year's US Open, she hasn't crossed the fourth round of a Major. Following the American's exit, Vondrousova and Elise Mertens were the only two players to make the second round here after winning a warm-up tournament on grass.
