"Navarro halts Krejcikova's Wimbledon title defence as Andreeva advances"

Defending Champion Krejcikova Falls to Navarro in Wimbledon Thriller

Barbora Krejcikova, the defending champion, left No 1 Court to loud applause after battling through injuries in her 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 defeat against 10th seed Emma Navarro. Only twice before in the Open era has a defending women’s singles champion lost in the third round—Venus Williams in 2006 and Petra Kvitova in 2015.

"Conditions were difficult," Navarro admitted. "She had injury timeouts, so finding my rhythm was challenging. But I stayed focused and pushed through."

Navarro held early, while Krejcikova opened her service game with a double fault before steadying herself with an ace and a well-placed slice to level at 1-1. A 15-minute rain delay followed, after which Krejcikova secured a hard-earned double break, her powerful forehand forcing errors from Navarro.

Serving to stay in the set, the American targeted Krejcikova's backhand and took the game after an errant shot from the Czech. The 17th-seeded Krejcikova responded with sharp serves and forehands, eventually sealing the set.

Navarro, aiming to recover from losing the first set at Wimbledon, held firm before breaking Krejcikova with clever shot selection. A misjudged lob and a backhand into the net shifted momentum to a deciding set, where Krejcikova’s unforced errors rose to 17. After regrouping briefly, she held serve but squandered five break-point chances. Navarro then capitalized on Krejcikova's sixth double fault and a weak slice into the net to break.

Consecutive breaks from both players gave Navarro a 3-2 lead before another pause as Krejcikova required a blood pressure check. Despite fatigue and visible frustration, the former champion fought on, but Navarro held twice and sealed victory with an unreturnable serve down the line.

"In the first set, I rushed too much and played into her hands," Navarro said. "She was sharp. I adjusted, slowed things down, and tried to disrupt her rhythm."

Navarro advances to face Mirra Andreeva, whose impressive run continued with a 6-1, 6-3 win over Hailey Baptiste. Andreeva has now claimed 35 WTA Tour match wins in 2025, trailing only world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka (44) and Iga Swiatek (37). At 18, she is the youngest player to reach the fourth round in the season’s first three majors since Nicole Vaidisova in 2006.

"I wanted to stay focused and attack," Andreeva said. "I’m pleased with how I played today."

Baptiste, who struggled in grass-court qualifiers earlier this season, appeared uncomfortable, failing to control her typically reliable forehand and serve. Coaching her was Franklin Tiafoe, joined in the player’s box by his twin, Frances.