Wimbledon 2025: Jasmine Paolini Crashes Out in Round 2, Alcaraz and Raducanu Ease Through.
Wimbledon 2024 runner-up and fourth seed Jasmine Paolini suffered a shock second-round exit at the hands of World No.62 Kamilla Rakhimova on Thursday. Despite taking the first set 6-4, Paolini faltered in the following two, losing 6-4, 4-6, 4-6 after two hours and 19 minutes of intense battle.
Paolini saved three match points while trailing 4-5 in the decider, but couldn’t hold off Rakhimova on the fourth, handing the Russian her first-ever third-round appearance at a Grand Slam. With this upset, Aryna Sabalenka now remains the only top-five seed still alive in the women’s draw.
Meanwhile, defending champion Carlos Alcaraz advanced comfortably into the third round, breezing past Britain’s Oliver Tarvet 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 on Centre Court. The 21-year-old looked in commanding form and will next face either Felix Auger-Aliassime or Jan-Lennard Struff in the third round.
Emma Raducanu, the 2021 US Open champion, delighted the home crowd with a strong performance against reigning Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova. Raducanu dismissed the Czech 6-3, 6-3 in just 82 minutes, sealing a spot in Round 3 where she will face a formidable opponent—World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka.
Raducanu, speaking after her win, said, “There’s no pressure at all on me in the next round,” acknowledging the challenge ahead. She lost her only previous meeting with Sabalenka last year at Indian Wells.
Elsewhere, Naomi Osaka continued her impressive comeback, defeating Katerina Siniakova 6-3, 6-2. Osaka now looks poised for a deeper run in the tournament as she eyes her first-ever Wimbledon quarterfinal.
30th seed Linda Noskova also progressed, overcoming Germany’s Eva Lys in three sets—6-2, 2-6, 6-3. Noskova will next face Kamilla Rakhimova, who will be riding high on confidence after her major upset over Paolini.
With the women’s draw wide open and top seeds falling early, Wimbledon 2025 is shaping up to be an unpredictable and thrilling tournament.
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