Coco Gauff, the world No. 2 and recent French Open champion, suffered a shocking first-round defeat at Wimbledon 2025, losing to Ukraine's Dayana Yastremska in straight sets. The loss marks only the third time in the Open Era that a woman has lost in the first round at Wimbledon immediately following a French Open victory.
The match, played on No. 1 Court, saw Gauff struggle with her serve and accumulate a high number of unforced errors. She finished with just six winners and 29 unforced errors, including nine double faults. Yastremska, currently ranked No. 42 in the world, capitalized on Gauff's struggles with aggressive play. Yastremska won the match 7-6 (3), 6-1.
Gauff acknowledged her difficulties, stating, "Dayana started off playing strong. I couldn't find my footing out there today". She also alluded to feeling "a little bit overwhelmed" mentally after her French Open win, which impacted her preparation for Wimbledon. The quick transition from clay to grass may have also been a factor.
This defeat marks Gauff's first opening-round loss at a major since Wimbledon in 2023. Despite her breakthrough at Wimbledon in 2019, where she reached the fourth round as a 15-year-old, the grass-court tournament has been her least successful Grand Slam.
Yastremska, on the other hand, expressed her excitement after the victory, saying, "I was really on fire... Playing against Coco is something special. She's a great player, a great person, and we have a very good relationship". This win marks Yastremska's first over a Top 2 player since 2019.
Gauff's loss contributes to a significant number of upsets in the early stages of Wimbledon 2025. A total of 23 seeds, 13 men and 10 women, have been eliminated in the first two days, tying the most at any Grand Slam since seeding expanded to 32 players in 2001. Other notable upsets include Jessica Pegula's loss to Elisabetta Cocciaretto and Alexander Zverev's defeat by Arthur Rinderknech.
Despite the loss, Gauff has had a strong year, highlighted by her recent French Open title. However, her struggles at Wimbledon continue, as she has lost in the first round in two of the last three years. She joins Justine Henin (2005) and Francesca Schiavone (2010) as recent French Open champions who lost in the first round of Wimbledon. Yastremska will advance to the next round, hoping to match or surpass her best Wimbledon result, a Round of 16 appearance in 2019.