Polish tennis player Iga Swiatek kicked off Wimbledon 2025 with a simple win on Tuesday. She beat Russia’s Polina Kudermetova 7-5, 6-1 in two fast sets. This victory sends Swiatek to the next round of the tournament.
Swiatek has won five huge titles before, including four French Opens and one US Open. Wimbledon’s grass courts, though, have been harder for her. Her best try here was making it to the quarterfinals two years ago. But she’s doing great this year. She recently reached the finals of a grass-court game in Germany, showing she’s getting good on grass.
This win keeps Swiatek’s streak going with 61 first-round wins in tournaments, the longest for any woman player in the 2000s. Next, she plays American Caty McNally, who won against Britain’s Jodie Burrage on Tuesday.
Swiatek is awesome on clay courts but stays quiet about her grass skills. Her recent games, though, show she’s getting better. Last week in Germany, she easily beat Italy’s Jasmine Paolini 6-1, 6-3 in the semifinals.
“That win made me happy,” Swiatek said. “I played the way I wanted. Practicing more on grass really helped me improve.”
Even though she’s not the top pick, Swiatek is one of the best players who could win Wimbledon this year. Only Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka ranks higher. Swiatek is ahead of 2022 Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina and current French Open champ Coco Gauff in guesses for the title.
With her strong hits and growing ease on grass, Swiatek hopes to go further at Wimbledon than ever. Fans will watch to see if she can bring her clay-court success to London’s famous grass courts. Her big shots and better moves make her a hard player to stop.