London (AFP) – Former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina suffered a shock third-round exit, losing 7-6 (7/4), 6-1 to Elise Mertens on Saturday.
Released: 04/07/2026 – 15:48
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World number two Elena Rybakina crashed out of Wimbledon © Glyn KIRK/AFP
Rybakina had hoped to follow her Australian Open triumph in January to win Wimbledon for a second time.
But the world number two was unable to repeat her 2022 victory at the All England Club as Belgian 25th seed Mertens was a major disappointment on Court One.
Rybakina, 27, also suffered a disappointing early exit from the recent French Open, losing to Yulia Starodubtseva in the second round.
The Russian-born Kazakhstani, who beat Ons Jabeur to win Wimbledon four years ago, has failed to get past the third round on her last two visits to south-west London.
Mertens is a two-time Wimbledon doubles champion and has reached the last 16 of the All England Club Singles Championship four times.
She will play Czech 21st seed Maria Buzkova to reach the quarterfinals.
The 30-year-old’s best achievement at a Grand Slam singles tournament was his performance in the semi-finals of the 2018 Australian Open.
© 2026 AFP