Item 1 of 4 Tennis – Wimbledon – All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London, Britain – June 29, 2026 Russia’s Mirra Andreeva celebrates winning her first round match against Poland’s Magda Linette REUTERS\/Jaimi Joy<\/p>\n
[1\/4]Tennis – Wimbledon – All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London, Britain – June 29, 2026 Russia’s Mirra Andreeva celebrates winning her first round match against Poland’s Magda Linette… Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab<\/a> Read moreLONDON, June 29 (Reuters) – French Open champion Mirra Andreeva<\/a> was given a good grasscourt workout on Monday before beating 59th-ranked Pole Magda Linette 7-5 \u200b6-4 in the first round at Wimbledon<\/a>.<\/p>\n The 19-year-old Russian fifth seed was \u200crelieved to come through her first Grand Slam test after her triumph at Roland Garros on clay three weeks ago.<\/p>\n Sign up here.<\/a><\/p>\n “It’s just always super special to get past the \u200bfirst round at a Grand Slam because you always have that \u200bextra pressure,” she told reporters.<\/p>\n “For me, I was also thinking \u2060that it would be very important for myself to just kind of \u200bprove myself that even if I did well at a last Grand Slam, \u200bthat I can still continue to try and do well.”<\/p>\n Andreeva used her big serve to great effect with eight aces but she also produced seven double faults as \u200bshe tried to outgun the experienced Linette, 15 years her senior.<\/p>\n The Polish \u200bplayer is no slouch on grass having reached the third round at Wimbledon three times \u200cbefore.<\/p>\n Linette \u2060was not afraid to come to the net and produced delicate dropshots and sharp volleys to test Andreeva as the players traded service breaks in both sets, but the Russian hit two unreturnable serves to take the \u200bfirst set and \u200bwore down her \u2060opponent in the second, serving out for the win.<\/p>\n Andreeva is bidding to become the first player to win back-to-back \u200bFrench Open and Wimbledon titles since Serena Williams in \u200b2015.<\/p>\n She faces \u2060a tough second-round battle with 2024 Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova and said she would be discussing her game plan with coach, another former Wimbledon champion, Conchita Martinez.<\/p>\n “She (Krejcikova) is a \u2060two-time \u200bGrand Slam champion. She’s very experienced. She’s \u200bplaying well on grass. So for sure it’s not going to be an easy match for \u200bme,” Andreeva said.<\/p>\n Reporting by Clare Lovell; Editing by Alison Williams and Ed Osmond<\/p>\n Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab<\/a><\/p>\n