Right then — we are gearing up for Jack Draper to take to No1 Court where he will face Marin Cilic. Draper has enjoyed a comfortable passage to the second round so far with his first-round opponent Sebastian Baez having to retire due to injury. Cilic has a huge serve, and will be a much tougher opponent. The 36-year-old might be down at 83 in the wolrd rankings but he has been hit by injuries and is comfortable on the grass — the Croatian made it the final in 2017 when he lost to Roger Federer.
Draper has never been past this stage at Wimbledon but after an impressive year where he has risen through the world rankings the 23-year-old is surely ready to have a big run at Wimbledon.
Rybakina into third round… again
Elena Rybakina comfortably secures her spot in the third round after a straight-sets victory over Maria Sakkari 6-3, 6-1. The world No11 seems to always deliver on grass and loves it at Wimbledon, where she has only lost twice since 2022 when she won the title. This year will be her fifth straight appearance in the third round. Jack Draper is coming up next on No1 Court.
Over on centre court Caty McNally has rallied from trailing Iga Swiatek 4-1 to level the first set at 4-4. She is doing a superb job of disrupting world No4 Swiatek’s rhythm.
Who is in the Royal Box at Wimbledon today?
Plenty of famous faces are out in full force today at Wimbledon with blue skies and 24C temperatures in SW19.
Actor and author Celia Imrie was photographed in the Royal Box with former Conservative Party leader William Hague. Alongside them, adventurer Bear Grylls, broadcaster Sir Chris Bryant and actor Rory Kinnear have also been spotted.
Celia Imrie, left and William Hague, centre, enjoy the action on Centre Court from the Royal Box
PA
Dragons’ Den star Deborah Meaden was also in attendance
EPA
Dragons’ Den business mogul Deborah Meaden and comedian Clive Anderson were also enjoying the sun on Centre Court and they were joined by former England rugby coach Sir Clive Woodward.
Swiatek underway on Centre Court
The spotlight remains on Centre Court this afternoon as world No4 and five-time grand slam champion Iga Swiatek steps onto the grass to face American Caty McNally in the second round. Swiatek is seeded eighth and breezed through her first-round clash with Polina Kudermetova 7-5, 6-1. McNally meanwhile secured here place by eliminating British wildcard Jodie Burrage.
Swiatek is chasing her best Wimbledon result yet — the only grand slam where she is yet to reach the semi-final stage. She brings grass-court form with here this year having appeared in the final at Bad Homburg. She leads McNally 3-0 in the first set.
Sakkari’s ‘nobody likes you’ moment
Currently in action on No1 Court is world No77 Maria Sakkari playing her second-round game against Elena Rybakina.
Sakkari can be a fiery character. Her “nobody likes you” moment happened after her first-round win over Yulia Putintseva at the 2025 Bad Homburg Open.
After a tense two-hour match, the players exchanged a brief, awkward handshake. Putintseva avoided eye contact, prompting Sakkari to say, “Just be like a human being.” Putintseva responded sarcastically with a curtsy and reportedly had some choice words for Sakkari, who then followed her to the umpire’s chair, repeating, “Nobody likes you,” as the tense exchange continued.
The incident quickly grabbed attention, with both players addressing it publicly. Sakkari said she held no personal grudge but stressed the importance of sportsmanship, while Putintseva defended her actions, saying she had followed the handshake protocol and dismissed the drama as blown out of proportion.
Sakkari, has never been beyond third round at Wimbledon and has just lost the first set 6-3.
A masterful Djokovic display
It is no reflection on Dan Evans that Novak Djokovic cruised through to the third round of Wimbledon with a straight-sets victory that was rounded off with the dreaded “bagel” (Stuart Fraser writes). This was the most efficient performance by the 38-year-old Serbian veteran since this time last year.
Djokovic did not waste any energy with a masterful display on Centre Court, seeing off Evans 6-3, 6-2, 6-0 in one hour and 47 minutes. It is his best win since beating Vit Kopriva by the same scoreline in the first round of Wimbledon 2024, and the first time he has won a set 6-0 at a grand slam since he faced Lorenzo Musetti at the 2024 French Open.
Evans was obviously the crowd favourite on home soil and entertained the crowd with his delicate slicing and dicing. The accurate serve of Djokovic was the key difference, though, with 11 aces and no break points faced until the final game.
Djokovic let out a little dance to his daughter in the crowd after his second-round win
AP
“A Brit in Britain is never easy to face,” Djokovic said. “Dan is a good quality player that possesses a lot of talent, a lot of great touch. He can be causing a lot of trouble to you if you are not on the top of your game, which I think I was from the very beginning. That was necessary. I executed it [his gameplan] perfectly.”
Djokovic eases into third round
It took Dan Evans until the final game of the third set to get the chance to break the serve of Djokovic, but lost them both as the seven-time Wimbledon champion wrapped up a straight-set victory in one hour and 47 minutes.
Evans gave it everything to conjure something special for the home crowd, and it is tough for him to be whitewashed like that on home soil. But Djokovic had so much more to give and there will be bigger challenges ahead as he sets his sights equalling Roger Federer’s Wimbledon record. Speaking of records though, his progression to the third round for the 19th time in his career is the most by any player in the open era.
Crowd getting behind Evans in vain
The Centre Court crowd are desperate for Dan Evans to land a blow on Novak Djokovic in this third set, but there is no sign of that happening. Very few could give Djokovic a game when he is playing like this and the Serbian is sending a real message to the locker room here. He leads the third set to love and is serving for the match.
Fery latest Brit to bite the dust
Arthur Fery is the latest Brit to be eliminated at Wimbledon after his second-round defeat to Luciano Darderi. Fery beat 20th seed Alexei Popyrin in the first round, but was brushed aside here by the Italian. The pair resumed this afternoon after play was suspended last night and the world No59 wrapped up a comprehensive three-set victory 6-4, 6-3, 6-3.
Darderi said on court: “You never know what is going to happen after a long break so I’m happy to come and finish the job.
“I just thought of it as a new match on a new day. It’s amazing for me to be playing here.
“Yesterday I played very well and today in the first game I started to break down but I managed to focus.”
Djokovic serving masterclass
This is such an efficient performance by Novak Djokovic on his serve (Stuart Fraser writes). After winning a 31-minute second set 6-2, he is sitting at 80 per cent of first serves in and 94 per cent of first serve points won. While his top speed is equal to Evans at 129mph, he is placing it with better accuracy to rack up seven aces so far.
Dan Evans, by contrast, is finding it a challenge to hold serve against one of the sport’s great returners, conceding a break twice in the second set. He’ll keep plugging away as best he can but it seems a near impossible task now at two sets down.
Djokovic not hanging around
It has not taken the Serbian long to race into a two-set lead here and he has taken this one 6-2. Evans could not deal with his serve — Djokovic has only lost five points on serve in this match so far — and the seven-time champion wrapped up the set in business-like fashion. He leads Evans 6-3, 6-2. Relentless.
Djokovic comes into Wimbledon 2025 chasing history in the form of equalling Roger Federer’s record of eight titles. Despite recent struggles and younger rivals, Djokovic is still one of the top contenders at SW19. After all, he is a tennis cyborg.
The past year hasn’t been vintage Djoker. He didn’t win a grand slam in 2024, the first time he has been winless in seven years, dropping to No7 in the rankings.
Djokovic dictating on Centre Court
An entertaining first set in the opening match of the day on Centre Court between Novak Djokovic and Dan Evans (Stuart Fraser writes). The latter has such a watchable game style on a grass court, repeatedly slicing the ball with his backhand and coming forward to put away a volley when the opportunity arises.
Evans is also a fighter and this showed in the way he saved nine break points before finally succumbing on the 10th at 4-3 down. A love hold by Djokovic in the next game ruthlessly sealed the set to gain the early advantage in this best-of-five-set encounter.
Alex de Minaur is a fighter. He fought back from a set down to crush French qualifier Arthur Cazaux 4-6, 6-2, 6-4, 6-0 — complete with a bagel in the final set that left Cazaux well and truly toasted. The Australian No1 used his trademark speed and tenacity to turn the match around, dominating the last set without dropping a single game.
Meanwhile, Czech teenager Jakub Mensik advanced with a gritty 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) win over American Marcos Giron. Mensik’s composure in the tense fourth-set tie-break proved decisive. Kudos to them both.
Miomir Kecmanovic secured a solid win over Jesper de Jong at Wimbledon today, prevailing in four sets with a final score of 1-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4. After dropping the opening set, the Serbian regrouped, leveraging strong baseline play and tactical serves to seize control. He broke De Jong’s serve in the second set, then dominated the third and fourth with consistent pressure and a tighter shot selection. The victory sends the 25-year-old Serb ranked 49th in the world through to the third round, where he will face the winner of the Dan Evans vs Novak Djokovic match. A showcourt surely awaits.
It’s never dull with Dimitrov
It is always fun watching Grigor Dimitrov play (Rick Broadbent writes). So much talent that the Bulgarian used to be called Baby Fed, and with looks that meant new balls were sometimes delivered by ball girls with the words “good luck”, he was once the world No3.
Ten years ago I watched him here and it seemed a matter of time before he at least made a grand-slam final but he never has. Instead, this year he notched up the dubious record of retiring from four consecutive grand-slam matches. Anyway, now 34 and the 18th seed, he has taken the first set against France’s Corentin Moutet 7-5. Still got the five o’clock shadow that he has curated since 2015. Whether he has still got it is more debatable.
Started on Wednesday, finished on Thursday, Fritz on Friday
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina has finally advanced to the third round of Wimbledon after a tough second-round battle against Botic van de Zandschulp which began yesterday. The match was interrupted due to darkness last night with Davidovich Fokina leading 6–1, 4–6, 6–3, 5–5, and resumed the following day. He held his nerve to close out the match upon resumption, winning 7-5 in the tie-break.
Fokina played an aggressive and confident game, frequently attacking the net and pressuring van de Zandschulp with smart shot placement. Statistically, he served four aces, landed 74 per cent of his first serves, and won 68 per centof his net points. Van de Zandschulp responded with four aces of his own but struggled on his second serve, winning only 40 per cent of those points.
This win puts Davidovich Fokina into the third round at Wimbledon, where he will look to continue his strong run on grass. His opponent? It’s only world No5 Taylor Fritz.
Francisco Cabral, the Portuguese tennis player, paid tribute to footballer Diogo Jota following his victory in the first round of the Wimbledon men’s doubles (David Brown writes).
“I have seen the very sad news,” he said. “The guy is a big name, not just in Portugal but in the world. He was a great human being with a nice family and three kids. My best wishes to them all. For his family it is very tough to recover from that.”
Cabral, 28, said he planned to wear a black armband in remembrance of the Portuguese star in his next match.
“I couldn’t get one in time today, but I want to in the next one.” The All England Club said players can wear black armbands if they wish.
JPJ out but can dry tears with £99k
It’s all over for Jack Pinnington-Jones, who was swept aside 6-1, 7-6 (8-6), 6-2 by Flavio Cobolli. There is no shame in defeat for the 22-year-old Briton, though, who reached the second round of a grand slam for the first time after turning professional last month. A cheque for £99,000 will not be unwelcome either. Cobolli, the No22 seed, will face Jakub Mensik or Marcos Giron in the third round.
Zeynep Sonmez became the first Turkish woman to reach the second round of the singles at Wimbledon and has now become the first Turkish woman to reach the third round. She served up a proper shock beating China’s Xinyu Wang in straight sets.
Wang was the solid favourite for this match but flopped to a 7-5, 7-5 loss. Sonmez, 23, maintained control in key moments and put in a ballsy, breaking Wang’s serve multiple times and holding her own serve comfortably.
She had never advanced from the first round of any grand slam before this tournament. She is on the run of her lifetime. Next up? Either Suzan Lamens or Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Alex de Minaur is having a strong Wimbledon so far. He opened his campaign with a confident straight-sets win over Roberto Carballes Baena, showcasing his trademark speed and control. The match included a short delay due to a ball-boy fainting, but De Minaur stayed composed throughout.
In his second-round match happening right now, he dropped the first set 6–4 against French qualifier Arthur Cazaux but responded well to level the match at one set all. De Minaur is looking sharp and determined. After a well-managed schedule post-Roland Garros, he seems refreshed and focused on making another deep run, aiming to at least match his quarter-final finish from last year. He remains one of Australia’s best hopes at this year’s championships. It’s with serve in the third set.
Jack Pinnington-Jones took a 3-0 lead in the tie-break but a pair of big serves from Cobolli were followed by a costly double-fault for the Briton (Tom Kershaw writes). The Italian’s superior groundstrokes eventually tell again and he now has a two-set lead. That could prove to be the last stand from Pinnington-Jones, who is playing in the second round of a grand slam for the first time. Cobolli has a lot of support on No18 Court, with chants of “Flavio” ringing out.
It’s not looking good for our home boy, Jack Pinnington-Jones. After a strong first-round win against Tomas Martin Etcheverry, Pinnington-Jones has showed flashes of potential but can’t find a way past the No 22 seed Italy’s Flavio Cobolli. His tournament looks to be ending in the second round after losing the second set via tie-break and has now been broken in his first service game of the third set. Hang in there, Jacky boy.
Never in doubt for Navarro
Emma Navarro has cruised into the third round of Wimbledon, swiftly defeating Veronika Kudermetova 6‑1, 6‑2 in just over an hour. The American No10 seed was dominant from the start, controlling play with authoritative serving and sharp baseline work to close out the match emphatically. With this win, Navarro continues her strong form at SW19, advancing solidly into the next stage. She reached the quarter-final last year — her best run at Wimbo.
JPJ not going to bed just yet
Jack Pinnington-Jones has fought back valiantly and broke Cobolli’s serve when the Italian was on the brink of taking the second set at 5-3 (Tom Kershaw writes). Cobolli then produced a fantastic lob followed by a backhand winner down the line that just caught the line to force the Briton to deuce on his serve, but Pinnington-Jones held gutsily to make it 5-5.
Can Swiatek finally conquer Wimbledon?
Iga Swiatek’s past year was a rollercoaster of brilliance, resilience, and controversy.
At Wimbledon 2024, she reached the third round—her best showing yet on grass. At the US Open 2024, she powered into the quarter-finals before being upset by Jessica Pegula. But in August, her season hit a bump: Swiatek tested positive for a banned substance, trimetazidine. It was traced to a contaminated melatonin supplement, and while deemed unintentional, she accepted a one-month suspension, missing part of the tour.
Bouncing back, she stormed into the Australian Open 2025 semifinals, dominating early rounds and defeating Eva Lys 6–0, 6–1 along the way. At Roland Garros, she delivered a heroic comeback win over Elena Rybakina from 1–6, 0–6 down, extending her clay dominance to 25 straight wins—before falling to Aryna Sabalenka in the semis.
After beating Polina Kudermetova in straight sets on Tuesday, Swiatek, 24, battles Cathy McNally today.
How to get yourself banned from Wimbledon, by Rick Broadbent
Big scandal in the media centre here (Rick Broadbent writes). In a regrettable fit of jollity, I wrote the name ‘Bjorn Borg’ on my locker here, not realising I was supposed to register this with the front desk. They clearly have a lower opinion of the former champion than I do because when I returned a SWAT team had hacked off the padlock, fearing some terrible security risk or at least an ill-advised comeback. This led to the shame-faced admission that I was actually Bjorn Borg. ‘We’ve found him,’ said one woman at the media reception with a mild tone of contempt. I do not expect to be invited back.
If you’re having Lime Bike problems I feel bad for you, son. Slotty may have 99 problems but parking isn’t one
High drama at the Lime Bike park (Owen Slot writes). There are hundreds of lime bikes here and this is where I’ve dropped my lime bike off every day. Today, though, the Lime Bike app was saying “no parking” here which was, of course, completely befuddling all us lime bikers. I mean, we can see plenty of evidence that there is parking here, but you’re telling us we can’t!? The problem, of course, is you cannot argue with an app. So this blogpost is really just me providing a service for reader/bikers. If you hit the same problem, the solution is to turn off your app and then turn it on again. Seriously. You’re welcome.
Pinnington-Jones getting owned
It’s been a humbling start for Jack Pinnington-Jones on No18 Court (Tom Kershaw writes). The young Briton pulled off a fine upset in the first round against Tomas Echeverry, but Flavio Cobolli, the No22 seed, has outclassed him so far. The Italian’s groundstrokes were struck with far more venom – he hit ten winners to Pinnington-Jones’s one – and he quickly broke twice to close out the first set 6-1.
Carnage as seeds crash out
It’s been carnage out there on the courts of SW19 (Owen Slot writes). We were only on day two and a record number of seeds had fallen and there was then no let-up on Wednesday. Three more women’s seeds were out and we hadn’t even reached tea-time. Then Jasmine Paolini followed suit and suddenly the women’s draw was without four of the top five.
What has happened, we have been asking, to the established sense of order — in both men’s and women’s competitions? Why this uprising from the unseeded depths of the Wimbledon draw?
Here, though, is the question at the heart of the All England Championships this year — not why this year, but why not every year? — because this giddy anarchy is not only great entertainment, but it actually makes sense. The surprise is that this insurrection against the seeded class at Wimbledon does not happen more often.
● Read more: Carnage as seeds crash out but real surprise is why more haven’t fallen
Alcaraz backs Tarvet to go far — after he finishes degree
A 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 defeat in the second round of Wimbledon would not normally be cause for celebration for a British player, but an exception can be made for Oliver Tarvet (Stuart Fraser writes).
The 21-year-old ranked No733 in the world can be deeply proud of his first appearance on Centre Court against a five-times grand-slam champion in Carlos Alcaraz. Considering he arrived for Wimbledon qualifying at a converted cricket ground in Roehampton last week as a relatively unknown figure in British tennis circles, the ten days since should be regarded as a triumph.
● Read more: Carlos Alcaraz backs Oliver Tarvet to go far — after he finishes degree
Norrie does not want Centre Court billing
There are sporting stages that are supposed to be hallowed ground. Get to play at Wembley, Lord’s or Centre Court and you are part of an indelible timeline. For this same reason the Theatre Royal Drury Lane used to make a killing by selling cheeseboards made from the old stage (Rick Broadbent writes).
Cameron Norrie does not think in such emotional terms and so, after becoming the first Briton into the third round, the reasonably old-stager pleaded with the organisers to keep him out of Wimbledon’s most famous arena.
Indeed, Norrie, 29, has no desire to play on Centre Court any time soon. After defeating the rising, if erratic, American star Frances Tiafoe, in four sets on No1 Court, he was asked if he would like to be upgraded. “Not really, to be honest,” he said after a gutsy 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-5 triumph, his first over a top-20 player at Wimbledon. “I would love to play on Court One [No1 Court] again. I like how it plays, how my team is in the very corner, and they have a good view, and you feel the connection. You can get fired up.
● Read more: Cameron Norrie sees off Tiafoe — but does not want Centre Court billing
Kartal cruised but Boulter knocked out
At last year’s Wimbledon, Sonay Kartal came out of nowhere (James Gheerbrant writes). A year later, she came back as a known known. When she stepped on to No3 Court for her seventh singles match on the lawns of the All England Club, she did so with a new and unfamiliar pressure upon her: that of a clear favourite. It’s a status she has worked for hungrily in her four years on the tennis circuit, one she has thoroughly earned over 12 months of rapid ascension, and on a cool, overcast day, in front of a politely expectant crowd, she was not about to let it weigh her down.
Ranked 111st in the world, her opponent, Viktoriya Tomova, was a different proposition from Jelena Ostapenko, whom she beat on Monday, and Coco Gauff and Sorana Cirstea, whom she faced last year, but certainly no pushover: she was getting the better of Ons Jabeur in the first round before the two-times Wimbledon finalist retired, and beat the 16th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova at last year’s French Open. The first five games of the match were close and hard-fought, with Kartal weathering significant jeopardy on her serve.
● Read more: Kartal cruises into third round but Boulter knocked out by lucky loser
Raducanu crushed Wimbledon winner. Next up? Sabalenka
The hype will start now but, really, it ought to be repackaged as hope (Alyson Rudd writes).
There was an enormous amount of love for Emma Raducanu out on Centre Court but that affection will need to be magnified to excess if she is to trouble Aryna Sabalenka in the next round.
It feels cruel to even imagine what the contrast might be given that Raducanu was at times majestic and certainly robust in dismantling Marketa Vondrousova’s game. All Raducanu had to do afterwards while interviewed on court was to smile and acknowledge the warmth of the spectators for them to cheer and applaud with gusto.
● Read more: Emma Raducanu crushes Wimbledon winner. Next up? World No1 Sabalenka
Draper’s car-pool mate Pinnington-Jones about to start
Jack Pinnington-Jones will get underway shortly against Fabio Cobolli, the No23 seed (Tom Kershaw writes). It is an uphill task for the 22-year-old Briton, who turned professional last month after a year at Texas Christian University. However, Pinnington-Jones is taking inspiration from his close friend Jack Draper, who used to give him lifts from Cobham to the LTA National Tennis Centre in Roehampton in a second-hand Volkswagen Polo when the pair were teenagers.
Pinnington-Jones pulled off an upset in the first round when he swept aside Tomas Echeverry, the world No53, and the Londoner, who went to school in Bournemouth and was coached as a teenager at West Hants Tennis Club in Dorset, will have a wealth of supporters at courtside again this morning.
“For me it’s a childhood dream fulfilled to win at Wimbledon,” he said after defeating Etcheverry. “I’m just trying to enjoy the moment and take it in. It hasn’t sunk in just yet. It’s very rare that you get to play in your own backyard and for that to be Wimbledon is special. It was awesome to see my friends and family on the court get stuck in and cheering me on. It was great to have them there and to see them and afterwards.”
Tube trouble this morning
Thousands of Wimbledon fans are unable to reach the All England Club on Thursday morning because of chaos on the Tube trains (David Brown writes).
Services are cancelled all day between Tower Hill and Whitechapel with severe delays on the rest of the line which includes Wimbledon and Southfields stations closest to the championships.
There have been repeated problems on the line and Paul Kholer, the MP for Wimbledon, wrote to Andy Lord the Transport for London Commissioner on Tuesday highlighting the issue.
He wrote: “Our world renowned tennis tournament has been this week yet attendees are being caught up in delays and cancellations.”
Order of play at Wimbledon today
Centre Court (starting 1.30pm)
• Daniel Evans vs Novak Djokovic (6)
• Iga Swiatek (8) vs Caty McNally
• Jannik Sinner (1) vs Aleksandar Vukic
No1 Court (starting 1.00pm)
• Mirra Andreeva (7) vs Lucia Bronzetti
• Maria Sakkari vs Elena Rybakina (11)
• Jack Draper (4) vs Marin Cilic
No2 Court (starting 12.00pm)
• Alex de Minaur (11) vs Arthur Cazaux
• Luciano Darderi v Arthur Fery (not before 12.30pm, Darderi leads 6-4, 6-3)
• Barbora Krejcikova (17) vs Caroline Dolehide (not before 1.30pm)
• Sofia Kenin (28) vs Jessica Bouzas Maneiro
• Ben Shelton (10) vs Rinky Hijikata
No3 Court (starting 12.00pm)
• Veronika Kudermetova vs Emma Navarro
• Grigor Dimitrov (19) vs Corentin Moutet
• Sebastian Ofner vs Tommy Paul (13)
• Daria Kasatkina (16) vs Irina-Camelia Begu
Welcome to day four of Wimbledon
So we had a bit of rain yesterday — it wouldn’t be an English summer without it — but that did not dampen the mood at SW19 as there was still a catalogue of classy tennis for punters to get stuck into. As well as endless Pimm’s, Strawberry’s and probably anything from M&S. Not sure how many people managed to sneak Chicken Cottage in power to you if you did. Day four of Wimbledon will no doubt bring finger-licking goodness, so make sure you stay with us to keep up to date with all the happenings.