LONDON—Barbora Krejcikova defeated 56th-ranked Alexandra Eala of the Philippines 3-6, 6-2, 6-1 at Centre Court on Tuesday, requiring a comeback to avoid becoming the second successive Wimbledon women’s champion to lose in the first round a year later at the All England Club.
Only one defending women’s champion lost in the first round of Wimbledon between the Open’s inception in 1968 and 2023: Steffi Graf in 1994.
The first unseeded woman to leave the All England Club with the singles trophy was Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic, who won the title last year. Early on Tuesday, it looked like it might happen again this year to Krejcikova, the 17th-seeded player and 2021 French Open champion.
Eala, a 20-year-old left-hander, was only making his second appearance at a Grand Slam tournament. In May, she lost in Roland-Garros in the opening round.
In the Open era, Eala is the only female representative of the Philippines to compete in Wimbledon’s main draw.
She received guidance from the 22-time major championship winner who retired at the end of the previous season while honing her tennis abilities at the Rafael Nadal Academy after signing with an agency at the age of 13.
Eala was aiming for what would have been her fourth 2025 top-20 triumph. She attracted notice in the Miami Open by defeating former No. 1 and five-time major champion Iga Swiatek, Australian Open champion Madison Keys, and 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko on her way to the semifinals.
Eala advanced to the final of the grass-court Eastbourne Open last week, defeating Ostapenko once more en route.
The 29-year-old Krejcikova advanced to the Eastbourne quarterfinals before pulling out of the competition due to a problem with her right thigh.
Tuesday, she got off to a rough start, committing 19 unforced errors in the opening set. However, Krejcikova improved her performance and finished with a total of 18 points for the remainder of the game. She frequently leaned forward to celebrate scores that brought her closer to the victory with a cry and a clenched fist.
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