Wimbledon 2024: 5 first-round women's singles matches to watch out for ft. Iga Swiatek vs Sofia Kenin
Wimbledon kicks off on Monday and for several tennis fans, the early-round matches are a binge-fest. This year, with three unseeded players who have won Grand Slams and been World No. 1, four others who have won Majors, and another who has been ranked No. 1, the women's draw is lit with several enthralling first-round match-ups that have the fans salivating. Here's a list of five marquee first-round matches to watch out for at the All England Club next week.
#5. Mirra Andreeva (24) vs. Brenda Fruhvirtova
First Career Meeting
The two highest-ranked 17-year-olds on the women's tour - Mirra Andreeva and Brenda Fruhvirtova - will clash for the first time on the pro tour at Wimbledon. The two played only once in the juniors, with Andreeva winning a Grade 1 final in the United States in 2021.
Andreeva is 27 days younger than Fruhvirtova but vastly more experienced at this level. The Russian is seeded 24th and reached the semifinals at Roland Garros last month. That was no fluke - she has won 14 of her first 19 matches in her first five Grand Slams as a pro, which included a fourth-round appearance at Wimbledon last year.
Fruhvirtova is making her Wimbledon debut and is 1-3 in Slams so far. She did not play any tune-up events on grass, while Andreeva lost her opening match in Bad Homburg, which was her only warm-up event on grass.
Both players aren't baseline-bashers, instead relying on their high-tennis IQ and court craft to win matches, which should make this a treat to watch for the fans.
#4. Paula Badosa vs Karolina Muchova
Head-to-head: Tied at 1-1 (Muchova leads 1-0 on grass)
A former World No. 2 vs a former Grand Slam finalist, with both players at different stages in their comebacks from injuries, is the backdrop against this fascinating first-round clash between Paula Badosa and Karolina Muchova.
After a torrid time with injuries and setbacks, Badosa looks to be in healthy shape at the moment. She reached the third round at the French Open and the quarterfinals in Bad Homburg. The Spaniard's best performance at Wimbledon has been back-to-back fourth-round appearances in 2021 and 2022.
Muchova only returned to the tour in Eastbourne this week for the first time since the US Open but pulled out after two matches as a precaution. The Czech, who reached the quarterfinals at the All England Club in 2019 and 2021, is a tennis purist's delight. Her crafty and attacking game is well suited to grass and her match-up against the baseline-hugging Spaniard should be a fun contrast of styles to watch.
#3. Victoria Azarenka (16) vs. Sloane Stephens
Head-to-head: Azarenka leads 5-4 (First Meeting on Grass)
This will be the 10th meeting between Victoria Azarenka and Sloane Stephens and is one of the two opening-round clashes between Grand Slam winners. This match has all the trappings to be a first-week blockbuster, but a lot of that would depend though on whether Stephens shows up. When in form, the former US Open champion is one of the best ball-strikers and fiercest competitors in the sport.
Azarenka can match Stephens from the baseline as well as on the intensity scale. The 34-year-old Belarusian reached back-to-back semis at Wimbledon in 2011-2012 but has been back to the last eight only once since then. She reached the semifinals in Berling before pulling out of Bad Homburg.
Stephens comes into Wimbledon having lost six of her last seven matches on tour. But if anyone can turn up the fire for a big match, it's the 31-year-old American.
#2. Ekaterina Alexandrova (22) vs. Emma Raducanu
First career meeting
At the age of 29, Ekaterina Alexandrova rose to a career-best 15th in the rankings in April. But the Russian's 2024 has been a mixed bag - she reached the semifinals in Miami, including a straight-sets win over top-ranked Iga Swiatek, reached the final in Linz indoors, and the semis in Rosmalen on grass. However, she also suffered opening-round defeats in nine tournaments, including the Australian and French Opens, taking her ranking down to No. 22
Her opponent, Emma Raducanu, is already a Grand Slam champion and has been stringing together several firsts in recent weeks. The Brit reached back-to-back quarterfinals on the WTA Tour for the first time during the grass season and secured her first career top-10 win (over fifth-ranked Jessica Pegula). Both of these are very positive signs for the Brit, who has come through a difficult time dealing with injuries, lofty expectations, and public backlash about her high-profile off-court endeavors.
There is genuine hype about Raducanu heading into Wimbledon, where she reached the fourth round as a qualifier in 2021, three months before her historic US Open breakthrough. Only this time, she comes in better prepared physically and with a resilient mindset to deal with the attention, expectations, and the spotlight.
#1. Iga Swiatek (1) vs. Sofia Kenin
Head-to-Head - Swiatek leads 2-0 (First Meeting on Grass)
This is a repeat of the 2020 French Open final which Iga Swiatek won. Since then, the two players' careers have gone in very different directions. Swiatek is a now five-time Grand Slam champion and the undisputed No. 1 in the sport.
Sofia Kenin went from a Grand Slam winner ranked in the top 5 to ranking outside the top 400, before rising to the top 30 last year. But Kenin has struggled in 2024 and has only six wins in 14 tournaments, including a first-round loss to Swiatek at the Australian Open.
Both players achieved their best Wimbledon result last year - a quarterfinal for Swiatek and a third-round appearance for Kenin. The Pole chose not to play any of the tune-up events leading into Wimbledon and given her relative lack of success on grass, this might be Kenin's best chance to take a set off the Pole and maybe push her to the limit.
Honorable mentions:
Angelique Kerber vs Yulia Putintseva
Jelena Ostapenko (13) vs Ajla Tomljanovic
Danielle Collins (11) vs Clara Tauson
Caroline Wozniacki vs Alycia Parks
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (25) vs Taylor Townsend