“Mentally, I’m really excited. Every time I come on these grounds, I get so inspired.” Coming off a Roland Garros win, Coco Gauff was keen on winning her first Grand Slam on the Center Court as well. Come July 1, the 21-year-old sensation is knocked out of Wimbledon in the first round by nerveless Ukrainian Dayana Yastremska, losing in straight sets, 7-6, 6-1.

After the heartbreaking defeat, the World No. 2 was in tears when admitting her mistakes on the Center Court. “Yeah, this definitely sucks,” Gauff said after the match. “I don’t know, I just feel a little bit disappointed in how I showed up today.” Yes, Gauff’s early exit stings, but wasn’t this already coming?

Even Yastremska, despite being allergic to grass, knew that she may have an edge against Gauff on the grass. “Obviously, she plays much playing much better on clay court and hard court, and I kind of felt [I have] a bit more priority on grass. But, well, in general, I don’t know!” the Ukrainian admitted. And considering Gauff’s record on the grass, Yastremska’s win was not surprising, to say the least.

Gauff may have countless grass wins ahead of her, but as of now, it appears to be the biggest nightmare for her. Wimbledon, the very Grand Slam where Coco announced her arrival when she defeated a 5x champ and her idol, Venus Williams, has now become the toughest surface for the 21-year-old. Earlier this month, before playing in the Berlin Open, Coco admitted that grass is not the best surface for her. “You need to play a little bit lower and more aggressive than the clay season, which is difficult, because you spend however many weeks playing a certain way,” she said.

And when China’s Wang Xinyu eliminated her in the second round in straight sets 6-3, 6-3 from the Berlin Open, Gauff’s weakness on grass was exposed, where she committed 25 unforced errors and seven double faults. Her number of errors went even higher in the Wimbledon match, which included 29 unforced errors and 9 double faults.

This is Yastremska’s first win over a Top-2 player since 2019, and Coco Gauff became the third Top 5 seed to make an exit from this tournament. With this win, the Ukrainian has now taken her H2H record to 1-3 against the American. What did she say after this incredible win, though?

After the match, Dayana Yastremska said, “First thing I wanna say is this court brings me a lot of nice memories. I played here in junior finals. It gave me a lot of emotions. I think it was a great match today. I was really on fire. I even have fire on my nails.” Later on, she went on to add, “Playing Coco is something special. We’ve played 4 times. It’s 3-1 for her. She’s a great player and great person. We have a very good relationship. I enjoyed a lot. These courts are made for the greatest players. I’m very grateful to be on this court. Thank you so much for the support.“

With this win, Yastremska is now going to face Russia’s Anastasia Zakharova in the second round. But what about the American hopes at the 2025 Wimbledon?

Can Madison Keys step up after Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula’s exit from the 2025 Wimbledon?

Well, now the 2025 AO champion seems to be one of the biggest hopes for all the American fans at the moment. She defeated Elena-Gabriela Ruse in the first round by 6(4)-7,7-5,7-5, and next up for her will be Serbia’s Olga Danilovic. Talking about predictions for the American women’s stars at Wimbledon, some had backed Gauff while others snubbed her for Madison Keys. Different experts shared different opinions!

Previously, experts like Chris Evert had backed Coco Gauff, saying that they definitely see that Gauff can win Wimbledon. While the former world number 4, Tim Henman, stated that he would love to see Coco Gauff win the Wimbledon Championships. Reacting to her previous defeat in Berlin, CoCo Vandeweghe had, in fact, claimed that that defeat may serve as a blessing in disguise ahead of her Wimbledon campaign. But all of those predictions were wasted with this defeat to the world number 42. 

Now, others like Andy Roddick didn’t look too optimistic about Gauff’s chances in this tournament. In fact, he had predicted that Coco Gauff wouldn’t be able to make it to the fourth round. But talking about Madison Keys, he said, “I like Madison Keys from the American side. I think she is my favorite. I think she is well-versed on the grass. She had good results.” Will Keys help Roddick’s predictions turn out to be true?

Several others, like Tracy Austin, Chanda Austin, and a few more, had also showcased their optimism with Keys’ chances at Wimbledon. Madison Keys’ best record at Wimbledon was reaching the QFs in 2015 and 2023. Do you think that with the absence of Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula in this epic grass court battle, Madison Keys will step up for the Americans? Don’t miss a moment—get minute-by-minute coverage of the Championships on EssentiallySports.