Iga Swiatek continued to avoid the upset bug at Wimbledon on Thursday, but the five-time Grand Slam champion had to escape from a one-set deficit to do so.
Wimbledon: Scores | Order of play | Draws
No. 8 seed Swiatek of Poland overcame Caty McNally of the United States 5-7, 6-2, 6-1 in a second-round showdown on Centre Court. Swiatek needed a grueling 2 hours and 25 minutes to defeat her former junior teammate and opponent McNally.
With the win, Swiatek becomes the third player this century to reach the third round at 22 consecutive Slam appearances, joining Amelie Mauresmo and Serena Williams.
Former World No. 1 Swiatek has still not lost before the third round of a Grand Slam since the 2019 US Open, and she is now 23-2 in Grand Slam second-round matches.
Collins awaits: Swiatek will now take on another American in the third round: former Top 10 player Danielle Collins.
Swiatek leads Collins 7-2 in their head-to-head, but Collins won their most recent meeting on the clay of 2025 Rome in straight sets. Also, Collins’ other win over Swiatek came in a huge Slam meeting: the 2022 Australian Open semifinals.
Junior days redux: The Swiatek-McNally history dates back to juniors, with the 2018 Junior French Open being a pivotal moment. They teamed up to win the doubles title at that event, but McNally also got a big win over Swiatek in the singles semifinals.
McNally would go on to the 2018 Junior Roland Garros singles final, where she finished runner-up to another rising star — Coco Gauff. Swiatek rebounded and won the very next junior Grand Slam singles title at 2018 Junior Wimbledon.
They had only previously played once on the pro tour, where Swiatek topped McNally at 2022 Ostrava in two close sets. McNally took a set from Swiatek this time, but the former World No. 1 regrouped to take the victory.
More to come…