The first week of Wimbledon has come to an end. We’ve been lucky to have some beautiful weather in west London, allowing the schedule to run – relatively – smoothly without the backlogs and court changes that sometimes wreak havoc at Wimbledon.
It wouldn’t be a Grand Slam fortnight without major tennis betting upsets in the first week. This year has been no different, with several seeds falling early on, including Venus Williams and former Grand Slam winner Stanislas Wawrinka.
Those who suffered a shock loss will have to forget about the riches of the Wimbledon 2019 prize money, though they of course still get a substantial fee.
Here’s a quick run through of the biggest shocks in the first week of Wimbledon…
THOMAS FABBIANO vs Stefanos Tsitipas
Stefanos Tsitsipas was one of the non-big-three favourites in 888sport’s tennis betting before the tournament began.
Thomas Fabbiano, an Italian right-hander, has never made it past the third-round of a Grand Slam. Tsitsipas eliminated Fabbiano at that stage at Wimbledon in 2018, but Fabbiano got sweet revenge in a five-set, first-round victory this year.
Currently ranked 89th in the world, and having never been higher than 70th, Fabbiano knocking out the world number six was a major shock. The Italian was in good form at Eastbourne, but few will have expected a performance like this.
BEATRIZ HADDAD MAIA vs Gabrine Muguruza
Beatriz Haddad Maia stunned Gabrine Muguruza with a straight sets, first-round win. Having suffered with injury issues throughout her young career, Haddad Maia had to qualify to get into this year’s Wimbledon.
Currently sitting outside the top 100, the Brazilian 23-year-old wasn’t given much of a chance despite Muguruza’s injury issues in the build up to Wimbledon.
Muguruza’s is a former Wimbledon champion, and while she’s fallen to down the rankings, her elimination has impacted the bracket, giving number one seed Ashleigh Barty a more favourable run into the second week.
LAUREN DAVIS vs Angelique Kerber
Lauren Davis thought her Wimbledon dreams were over a week before the tournament when she lost in the final qualifying round.
She was awarded a place in the first round as a ‘lucky loser’, however, and took full advantage of the opportunity, beating Kateryna Kozlova to set up a second-round clash with Angelique Kerber.
Reigning champion Kerber was far from her best, and Davis put in the performance of her life, winning the match in three sets. Kerber, who entered the tournament as world number five, will drop out of the top 10 at the next rankings update.
REILLY OPELKA vs Stanislas Wawrinka
Three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka lost an epic second-round five-setter to towering American 21-year-old Reilly Opelka. Wawrinka cruised through the first round, as did Opelka.
Wawrinka took a 2-1 lead, and looked set to make his way into the third round. Opelka had other ideas, as he snatched a break of serve in the fourth to force a fifth set, which turned out to be an absolute epic.
It took 14 games for Opelka to win the fifth as their respective serves remained strong. This was Opelka’s first ever five-set victory, and a big step in his career after winning his first title in New York in February.
JIRI VESELY vs Alexander Zverev
Alexander Zverev’s Grand Slam troubles continued as he fell in the first round to Jiri Vesely. Still yet to make it past the quarters of a Slam, despite regularly being in the top five of the world rankings, questions are being asked about Zverev’s ability on the biggest stage.
This follows a fourth-round exit at the Australian Open and a third-round elimination at the 2018 US Open. While Vesely enjoys playing on the grass, the qualifier and world ranked 106 was still the underdog.
With what looked a favourable run to the last eight, this was a real missed opportunity for Zverev.
COCO GAUFF vs Venus Williams
It was impossible to do this article without including the 15-year-old sensation Coco Gauff. The teenager has taken the tennis world by storm, and has shot to superstardom in a week.
Any of her matches could have been included here, but it was the first-round win against Venus Williams that started off Cocomania.
The five-time Wimbledon champion is over double the age of Gauff. It was a fearless, and frankly astonishing performance from the young American. This match immediately became one of the greatest shocks in Wimbledon history.
YULIA PUTINTSEVA vs Naomi Osaka
Naomi Osaka surged to the top of tennis, winning the 2018 US Open and 2019 Australian Open. The 21-year-old has slumped over the last few months, however.
A third-round exit at Roland Garros was a disappointment, but she remained a key feature of the 2019 Wimbledon news, tips and predictions and was given the number two seed.
Osaka became the first top-two Wimbledon women’s seed to fall in the first round since Martina Hingis in 2001. Yulia Putintseva beat Osaka in Birmingham last month but was not expected to repeat that at Wimbledon.
This is a significant setback for Osaka. The highs of the Grand Slam victories were always going to come to an end, and it will be fascinating to see how she bounces back.
For all the odds on the Aus open - https://www.888sport.com/
*Odds subject to change - correct at time of writing*
