- Sinner, Sabalenka Reach Wimbledon Third Round as Andreeva Suffers Shock Exit
Defending men’s champion Jannik Sinner continued his Wimbledon title defence with another hard-fought victory on Wednesday, while world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka safely booked her place in the third round as French Open champion Mirra Andreeva crashed out in one of the biggest upsets of the tournament so far.
Sinner, who survived a five-set scare in the opening round, once again had to dig deep before overcoming Portugal’s Nuno Borges 7-6(4), 7-6(2), 6-4 on Centre Court.
Although the Italian world No. 1 won in straight sets, the contest was far from comfortable as Borges matched him for long periods with powerful serving and fearless shot-making.
The victory sends Sinner into the third round at Wimbledon for the fifth consecutive year as he continues his quest to successfully defend the title he won last season.
The four-time Grand Slam champion arrived at the second round after recovering from two sets to one down to defeat Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic in a gruelling first-round battle that left him nursing a foot injury following an awkward fall.
Despite concerns over his fitness after that incident, Sinner showed no obvious signs of discomfort against Borges, although he admitted afterwards that there is still room for improvement.
“The second set was very tough. The first couple of sets we were serving very well. These are matches where you don’t have a lot of control, so I’m happy to win,” Sinner said.
“I didn’t do a lot of practice because the first match was very long. There are a couple of things I need to improve. I still feel there are moments where I need to get back to my rhythm.”
Sinner, who ended Carlos Alcaraz’s two-year reign as Wimbledon champion in last year’s final, will next face American Jenson Brooksby for a place in the fourth round.
While Sinner advanced, one of the tournament’s biggest stories unfolded on Centre Court as French Open champion Mirra Andreeva suffered a surprise second-round defeat.
The Russian teenager arrived in London as one of the favourites after capturing her maiden Grand Slam title at Roland Garros just weeks ago.
However, former Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova produced a remarkable comeback to defeat the fifth seed 4-6, 7-5, 6-4.
The experienced Czech, who lifted the Wimbledon trophy two years ago and won the French Open in 2021, demonstrated her composure under pressure to end Andreeva’s hopes of adding a second consecutive Grand Slam title.
“What a match! It’s always been a huge fight against Mirra,” Krejcikova said after the victory.
“She is such a young and unique player. I’m extremely proud that I managed to win on this beautiful Centre Court, the best court in the world.”
In the women’s draw, world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka also progressed, although she was made to work hard by American McCartney Kessler.
Sabalenka dominated the opening set before surviving a tense second-set tie-break to claim a 6-1, 7-6(9) victory.
The Belarusian admitted it had been one of her toughest matches of the tournament so far.
“That was a true battle and I’m super happy that I was able to stay in that second set,” Sabalenka said.
Still searching for her first Wimbledon title, Sabalenka will face former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in the third round.
Elsewhere, seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic was scheduled to face Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas later on Wednesday as he continues his bid for a record 25th Grand Slam singles title.
The 39-year-old Serbian recovered from a difficult opening-round performance against China’s Wu Yibing and will take confidence from having won each of his last 11 meetings with Tsitsipas.
In other women’s matches, Japan’s Naomi Osaka continued her encouraging run with a comfortable 6-3, 6-2 victory over Russia’s Anastasia Gasanova, moving a step closer to reaching the Wimbledon fourth round for the first time in her career.
American stars Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula also advanced.
Gauff displayed remarkable resilience to overcome Solana Sierra in a dramatic deciding-set tie-break after trailing 7-4, winning six consecutive points to complete an impressive comeback, while fourth seed Pegula progressed with another assured performance.
Attention also remains on Serena Williams, whose planned doubles return alongside sister Venus has been thrown into doubt after the 44-year-old suffered a knee injury during her first-round singles defeat on Tuesday.
Williams’ team says the 23-time Grand Slam champion is doing everything possible to recover in time for the doubles competition.
With several title contenders safely through but Andreeva already eliminated, Wimbledon 2026 continues to produce high-quality tennis and unexpected twists as the race for the coveted trophies gathers momentum.
