American No.3 seed Jessica Pegula faced a stunning early exit at Wimbledon, losing 6-2, 6-3 to Italy’s Elisabetta Cocciaretto in the first round on Tuesday. This marks Pegula’s earliest Grand Slam defeat since the 2020 French Open. Despite winning the Bad Homburg title last week, where she beat Iga Swiatek on grass, Pegula managed only five winners and made 24 unforced errors in a match lasting under an hour.
Cocciaretto, ranked 116th, became the first Italian ever to defeat a top-3 seed at Wimbledon in the Open Era. Pegula admitted her opponent “played absolutely incredible tennis” and said her own serve was “terrible,” winning just 42% of second serve points. Cocciaretto, who will face American Katie Volynets in the second round, credited her win to staying aggressive and not worrying about outcomes.
