In the first round of Wimbledon 2026, 13th seed Jasmine Paolini lost the first set 6-0.
That set wasn’t nearly as shocking as it should have been. Paolini came into that match with zero wins on grass this season, a losing record in singles matches, and a persistent foot injury. She had fallen out of the top 10 and the furthest she made it in any tournament was the round of 16. She was already on upset alert heading into Wimbledon, and that 6-0 opening set against recent grass 250 champion Robin Montgomery very well could have sealed her fate.
But it didn’t.
Paolini won the second set, 6-4, undeterred by losing an early lead at the start of the second. She improved every aspect of her game in that second set, stronger both on serve and on return, and it was reflected in the scoreline.
In the third, Montgomery went up 4-2, but in a performance reminiscent of Paolini’s rise on tour, she broke back and turned on the pressure in her return games, eventually breaking for the match in the eleventh hour.
The 0-6 6-4 7-5 win gave Paolini an exactly even record on the year. In a way, it was a clean slate, and Paolini rewrote the story of her season entirely.
Jasmine Paolini Resurgent in Wimbledon Run
In her second-round match against Viktorija Golubic, Paolini lost her serve three times in the first set, but broke back on each occasion. And when the set went to a tiebreak, it was all Paolini as she didn’t drop a point. With a crucial break to love down the stretch in the second, Paolini was into the third round.
There, she faced Maria Sakkari, a player she lost to in lopsided straight sets earlier in the season. Paolini completely flipped the script this time, winning 6-1 6-2 in just over an hour. Paolini wasn’t broken once, saving the two break points she faced in the first set and facing none in the second. And with that dominant win, Paolini matched her best result by round this season. There was no way to go but up.
Her toughest test yet came in the form of 29th seed Alexandra Eala, who just two days prior had taken down defending champion Iga Swiatek. Backing up a win like that is difficult for anyone, especially a young player like Eala, but she nearly pulled it off. Paolini, though, was just too good, finally finding her best level after a season of searching for it.
In a match that was certain to be defined by breaks of serve, Paolini converted four break points while Eala only converted three. That one made the difference, as Paolini broke at 4-3 in the third set and subsequently served out the match. After a back-and-forth battle, Paolini took control late and ended it in the blink of an eye. It was the way an experienced top player wins matches, and despite her first half of the season, that’s still what Paolini is. And she knows just how much further she can go.
The last time Paolini made a Grand Slam quarterfinal was at Wimbledon in 2024, where she went on to make the final. With good form, confidence, and a fairly open draw all working in Paolini’s favor, she can certainly get there again, and maybe even go a step further.
But even if Paolini loses to Marta Kostyuk in the quarterfinal on Wednesday, this will have been an excellent run. Paolini has moved up 17 spots in the year-end race, into the Top 30, and has maintained her Top 15 standing in the WTA rankings. In a match, in a tournament, and even in the scope of an entire season, Jasmine Paolini has proven again that she can never be counted out.
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
