Wimbledon stunned by historic scenes as record number of seeds fall

In 150 years of tennis at Wimbledon we’ve never seen chaos like this with Novak Djokovic at the centre of extraordinary drama.

History has been made at Wimbledon with 13 seeds from the gentleman’s singles draw wiped out in the first round.

It is the most in the history of the prestigious tournament and also equals the grand slam record of 13 men’s seeds knocked out in the first round at the Australian Open in 2004.

The carnage was headlined by the defeat of German third seed Alexander Zverev overnight Tuesday.

Novak Djokovic looked like a potential 14th victim on Wednesday morning when he needed treatment from a doctor and physiotherapist after losing the second set against Alexandre Muller.

However, the 23-time grand slam champ recovered from there to close out the match 6-1 6-7 6-2 6-2.

His recovery was all that saved the day’s play from going into tennis folklore in eyes of leading tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg.

❌ Zverev (3)
❌ Musetti (7)
❌ Rune (8)
❌ Medvedev (9)
❌ Cerundolo (16)
❌ Humbert (18)
❌ Popyrin (20)
❌ Tsitsipas (24)
❌ Shapovalov (27)
❌ Bublik (28)
❌ Michelsen (30)
❌ Griekspoor (31)
❌ Berrettini (32)

Equalling the all-time record for most seeds to lose in Round 1… pic.twitter.com/yDjBINCSxk

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) July 1, 2025

“If Djokovic loses this tonight, this would probably be right up there with 2013’s famous Black Wednesday for craziest day in Wimbledon history,” he posted on X.

There have also been shock results across the ladies’ singles draw with No. 2 seed Coco Gauff knocked out in straight sets by Daria Yastremska on Wednesday morning.

There have been a total of 10 seeds eliminated from the women’s draw, including American No. 3 seed Jessica Pegula.

Zverev, meanwhile, suffered his earliest Grand Slam exit since 2019 as he was stunned by France’s Arthur Rinderknech.

Coco Gauff was not happy. Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP.

Gael Monfils hugs Ugo Humbert after his surprise win. Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images.

Zverev, a three-time Grand Slam runner-up, slipped to a shock 7-6 (7/3), 6-7 (8/10), 6-3, 6-7 (5/7), 6-4 defeat against the world number 72 in a marathon clash lasting four hours and 40 minutes on Centre Court.

The 28-year-old is the highest-ranked seed to fall so far in this year’s men’s singles at the All England Club - but was joined in the exit lounge behind 11 others.

Lorenzo Musetti (7), Holger Rune (8), Daniil Medvedev (9), Francisco Cerundolo (16), Alex Popyrin (20), Stefanos Tsitsipas (24), Denis Shapovalov (27), Alexander Bublik (28), Alex Michelsen (30) and Matteo Berrettini (32) all also fell at the first hurdle in historic scenes.

Novak Djokovic was attended to by a doctor. Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images.

The 13th seed to be toppled in the opening round came when Gael Monfils eliminated Ugo Humbert in a five set marathon.

Monfils at age 38 is the oldest player in the men’s draw and was visibly emotional as he closed out the win.

American Brandon Nakashima is the only seed still yet to book his passage through to Round 2. He was leading 6-4 4-6 7-6 when his match with Yunchaokete Bu was suspended.

Arthur Rinderknech of France celebrates winning match point against Alexander Zverev of Germany. (Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)

Arthur Fery of Great Britain celebrates match point against Alexei Popyrin of Australia. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Zverev, who reached the Australian Open final in January, endured his latest Wimbledon flop in a tie that initially started on Monday evening.

When play was halted due to Wimbledon’s 2200 GMT curfew, the match was level at one-set all.

But Rinderknech seized his chance once play resumed in the blazing London heat on Tuesday afternoon.

Rinderknech hit 25 aces and although Zverev replied with 31 of his own, it was not enough to stave off an embarrassing defeat.

Zverev has failed to make it past the fourth round at Wimbledon in nine visits to the grass-court major.

He had reached at least the second round in his previous 20 Grand Slam appearances.

Five Aussies still standing

After an opening day of carnage for the Aussies in the draw, 11th seed Alex de Minaur had a straightforward win against Roberto Carballes Baena, taking the match 6-2 6-2 7-6 (7-2).

With girlfriend Katie Boulter watching on in the stifling heat, the Demon was impressive in his first match back after his brief break away from the sport.

Aleksandar Vukic also progressed with an impressive 6-3, 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (7/5) victory over Tseng Chun-hsin.

Alex De Minaur slugged it out. Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP.

After Jordan Thompson earlier reached the second round on the opening day, Rinky Hijikata became the fourth Aussie male to win through to the second round with a straight sets win over David Goffin.

Alex Bolt lost to Ben Shelton, James McCabe fell to Fabian Marozsan and Adam Walton was knocked out by Frenchman Arthur Cazaux after a five-set rollercoaster.

Seventeen Aussies started the tournament in the gentleman’s and ladies’ singles draws and there are now just five left standing.

Daria Kasatkina is the only Aussie left in the ladies’ singles draw after she triumphed against Emiliana Arango (COL) 7-5, 6-3 on Day 2.

Other big results on Day 2

There were no mistakes from world number one Jannik Sinner, who brushed aside fellow Italian Luca Nardi on Court One with a minimum of fuss.

Unfazed by the scorching conditions, the three-time Grand Slam champion sealed a 6-4, 6-3, 6-0 win in just one hour and 48 minutes.

Men’s fifth seed Taylor Fritz completed a gruelling five-set win against France’s Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard after losing the first two sets on tie-breaks.

The match was suspended late Monday due to curfew rules.

Petra Kvitova’s Wimbledon farewell ended in an emotional defeat as the two-time champion was beaten 6-3, 6-1 by Emma Navarro in the first round on Tuesday.

Kvitova returned from maternity leave in February following the birth of her son Petr in 2024, but found it difficult to handle the demands of being a mother on the gruelling tennis circuit.

The 35-year-old Czech announced last week that she will bring the curtain down on her career after the US Open in August.

Kvitova’s decision gave the former world number two, who has won 31 titles in her career, one last opportunity to return to the scene of her Wimbledon triumphs.

But American 10th seed Navarro ruined her hopes of a long Wimbledon goodbye with a clinical 60-minute victory on Court One.

Kvitova could not hold back the tears when she was given a standing ovation by the crowd, responding with a wave before drying her eyes.

“It’s very special to play on this beautiful court one more time. I wish I could play a little bit longer but it’s OK, whatever” she said as more tears flowed.

“This place holds the best memories I could wish for. I never dreamt of winning Wimbledon.

“I will miss Wimbledon for sure, I will miss tennis but I’m ready for the next chapter as well.

“I can’t wait to be back here as a member. Thank you very much Wimbledon.”

Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic waves to the crowd after her first round women's single match against Emma Navarro. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

A raw 21-year-old when she stunned Maria Sharapova to win the 2011 Wimbledon final, three years later Kvitova returned to the All England Club title match to rout Eugenie Bouchard 6-3, 6-0.

Now ranked 572, Kvitova has lost eight of her nine matches since becoming a parent.

But she says Wimbledon means “everything to me”, an emotional connection forged not just in her tennis triumphs but also because her engagement to her coach Jiri Vanek took place on Centre Court in 2022.

She rolled back the years at the start of the first set, racing into a 3-1 lead with a series of blistering winners.

But the left-hander is no longer the force of old and she lost five games in a row with a host of unforced errors as Navarro took the set.

By the time Kvitova lost the first two games of the second set, her fate was almost sealed.

She managed one last echo of yesteryear, holding serve in the third game and celebrating with a clenched fist.

That show of defiance was Kvitova’s final fling as a double-fault finished her All England Club career.

She bowed out with a kiss to her family in the players’ box before leaving the Wimbledon stage for the last time.

- with AFP

Originally published as Wimbledon stunned by historic scenes as record number of seeds fall