In a women’s tournament with big surprises, the dominator of the past few months has now also been caught in Wimbledon. After 37 successes and more than four months, the impressive winning streak of world number one Iga Swiatek broke on the grass classic.
The 21-year-old lost in the third round on Saturday 4: 6, 2: 6 against Frenchwoman Alizé Cornet. The Pole had won the French Open and the previous five tennis tournaments and was also the top favorite at Wimbledon.
“I wasn’t in my best shape so I knew this could happen,” said Swiatek, who is less fond of playing on grass. “Right now I’m happy with my streak, I’m glad I did it.”
This leaves only two of the top ten seeded players in the round of 16: Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur and Spain’s Paula Badosa. Jule Niemeier and Tatjana Maria, the remaining German professionals, have each thrown a top ten player out of the tournament.
Cornet: “flattered that I hit her”
In her first loss since February 16, Swiatek made 33 unforced errors and her second serve was repeatedly attacked by Cornet. The 32-year-old has never made it past the round of 16 at Wimbledon, but she shocked American superstar Serena Williams at the tournament.