WIMBLEDON — Clara Tauson’s first three visits to Wimbledon’s main draw all ended in the first round.
After Saturday’s 7-6 (6), 6-3 upset of 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina, Tauson has now collected three wins in the span of a week.
Coming into this third-round match, Rybakina had the best record at the All England — 21-3 — of any woman in the field. As the match progressed, you could see the fearless Tauson accelerate through the steep learning curve on this tricky surface.
In the end, she scored one break against Rybakina’s serve (on 10 break opportunities) and did not get broken herself.
This was the 22-year-old Dane’s first Top 20 win on grass, and it sends her into the second week at the All England Club. She’ll play the winner of the later match between No. 8 seed Iga Swiatek and Danielle Collins in the fourth-round on Monday.
Some takeaways:
History all around: Tauson has already equaled her best-ever Grand Slam result — her Round of 16 run last year at Roland Garros. It ended with a loss to Ons Jabeur.
In the larger picture, a victory Monday would give her the best Wimbledon result achieved in the Open Era by a woman from Denmark. Caroline Wozniacki reached the fourth round six times but never took the next step.
A delicate touch: These two players came into the match at No. 1 and No. 2 in aces among Hologic WTA Tour players. For the record, Tauson clung to her narrow lead by adding three to her total of 250, Rybakina, with five aces, is at 249.
But it was Tauson’s extraordinary touch that ultimately won this match.
Serving at 4-5 and facing her first set point, Tauson hit the shot of the match — a gorgeous drop shot that took Rybakina by complete surprise.
Delaying tactics: For the second straight day, rain visited the All England Club. But unlike Friday, when play was delayed at the outset, this was far more invasive.
With the score tied 4-all in the first set, there was a two-hour rain delay on Court 2. When play resumed, Tauson found an equilibrium after saving two set points in her first service game and settled down in the tiebreak.
Then, with Tauson serving at the critical juncture of 4-2, 40-30 in the second, a light drizzle began. This time the players didn’t leave the court but were permitted to warm up after about 15 minutes of waiting.
With a single serve — and a Rybakina return into the net — Tauson forged a 5-2 lead.
An abrupt exit: It was a disappointing performance from Rybakina, who failed to take advantage of a main draw that had already lost six Top 10 seeds.
This was the first time in five appearances here that she’s failed to reach the fourth round.
Rybakina dropped only seven games in her first two matches, but dropped that many in the first-set tiebreak. It was 6-all when she hammered a backhand past the baseline and failed to land a forehand return.
Rybakina finished with 31 winners and 31 unforced errors. Tauson was just a little bit better, with 25 winners and 22 unforced errors.