Mirra Andreeva won her first Grand Slam title by winning the French Open in June
Mirra Andreeva won her first Grand Slam title by winning the French Open in June
French Open champion Mirra Andreeva broke down in tears in a news conference after she was knocked out of Wimbledon by Barbora Krejcikova.
Russian 19-year-old Andreeva had hurled her racquet in frustration and shouted “I quit” towards her team before making a hasty exit off court following a 4-6 7-5 6-4 defeat in a gruelling second-round match lasting almost three hours.
Asked how long it would take to recover from the loss, she said: “It’s going to take some time, maybe a couple of days, and then I’m going to be back to practise for hard courts.”
Krejcikova dedicated her thrilling win to her tennis-loving niece, who was at home with chickenpox.
Krejcikova, who won the women’s singles title at Wimbledon in 2024, missed six match points at 5-3 up in the deciding set, but regained her composure to see out victory a game later.
“I believe my little niece was watching, and my nephew. She is also playing tennis and she loves it,” Krejcikova said.
“She’s actually sick – I think she has chickenpox. My nephew got it from kindergarten, so I hope my brother let her and my nephew watch this match.
“I hope she is going to be proud of me and hopefully I can give her some motivation for tennis and also for life.”
Krejcikova and Andreeva looked confused when loud cheers rang around Centre Court after England beat DR Congo to reach the last 16 of the football World Cup.
Krejcikova has been plagued with injuries and dropped down the rankings since her triumph at the All England Club two years ago, while she suffered first-round exits at the Australian Open and Roland Garros this season.
“It’s definitely special. I have been through a lot with injuries and also in my personal life in the last couple months,” the world number 38 said.
“It was really hard to get through with the all the emotions of what has happened.”
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Frustrated Andreeva throws racket after losing to Krejcikova
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Frustrated Andreeva throws racket after losing to Krejcikova
Osaka ‘mixing it up’ with another showstopper outfit
Another day, another stunning Wimbledon outfit for Naomi Osaka.
After the four-time Grand Slam champion arrived for her opening match at the All England Club in an elegant, full-length kimono – entirely white to adhere to the tournament’s strict dress code – Osaka chose to “mix it up a little bit”.
Returning to action on Wednesday, the 28-year-old combined a white jacket with floral pattern with a long train that trailed behind her, attached to her waist by an obi – a large, decorative belt traditionally worn with a kimono.
Osaka stopped spectators and photographers in their tracks on her walk from the locker room to number two court.
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Osaka – keeping up appearances
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Osaka – keeping up appearances
Little over an hour later, she equalled her best Wimbledon run by beating Russian Anastasia Gasanova 6-3 6-2 to reach the third round.
“I feel like my inspiration can be anything,” said former world number one Osaka, who was born in Japan to a Haitian father and Japanese mother and mostly grew up in Florida.
“I took a trip to Japan one day,” she said.
“Obviously, you go to Harajuku [a district of Tokyo famous for its fashion culture], and see everyone expressing themselves through clothes.
“It was just so cool and colourful. That stuck out to me a lot. I kind of used that in my fashion experimentation.
“I don’t really ever have a plan when it comes to clothes. It’s OK to try something and fail, but I’d rather just try it and see how it goes.”
Osaka will face Russia-born Australian Daria Kasatkina in the third round, with world number one Aryna Sabalenka a potential fourth-round opponent.
Osaka’s recent Grand Slam outfits
Image source, Getty Images
Image source, Getty Images
Image source, Getty Images
Image source, Getty Images
Image source, Getty Images
Image source, Getty Images
Image source, Getty Images
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Later, Sabalenka advanced to the third round before making one fan’s day on Court One.
Having just completed a 6-1 7-6 (11-9) victory over McCartney Kessler, Sabalenka stopped and grabbed her phone to take a photo with a young girl who had a replica of the Belarusian’s tiger tattoo on her left arm.
Sabalenka has said the tattoo is to “show her aggressive attitude while playing tennis”.
“It was so adorable. She said she has the same tattoo as me. It was really cute,” the world number one told BBC Sport.
“It’s very inspiring to see little kids copying you, watching you and supporting you.”
Sabalenka will face former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in an enticing third-round match after the Latvian swept aside Croatia’s Antonia Ruzic 6-2 6-0.
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‘That’s so cute!’ – Sabalenka and young fan show off matching tattoos
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‘That’s so cute!’ – Sabalenka and young fan show off matching tattoos
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