World No 1 Iga Swiatek dumped out of Wimbledon by Yulia Putintseva

It is very possible that Iga Swiatek will become the champion at Wimbledon in the future. However, this year she has been defeated in the third round by Yulia Putintseva from Kazakhstan. Putintseva showed amazing skills and strategies on Saturday, causing Swiatek to lose the match after initially taking the lead. Despite Swiatek's previous grand slam victory, Putintseva's impressive performance resulted in a surprising 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 win.

"It feels amazing, it feels really good," stated the player ranked 35th in the world, who has only won five matches out of nine in previous visits here. "I was completely concentrated on playing quickly and not allowing her much time, and it paid off. That was basically the key to my success."

The strategy was to focus on my game and, as my coach advised, to give my all on every point, and it was effective. I remembered during the game that I had defeated the top-ranked player in the world on grass before, which also gave me a boost.

Putintseva's victory was in Birmingham against Naomi Osaka in 2019. Coming off a recent title win in the same city, she arrived with a strong belief in her abilities. Despite Swiatek's impressive 21-match win streak, which included her fourth French Open title, Putintseva was undeterred in her confidence.

However, there is still a vulnerability in the 23-year-old player when she is on a grass court and has not had as much time to get ready. Opponents are able to put her in situations where she is not at ease. She made 38 mistakes that were not forced, showing that her usually strong game fell apart.

Despite Swiatek winning all four of their prior matches, Putintseva has always put up a good fight, managing to avoid the embarrassing defeat of being "bagled" or "breadsticked" by Swiatek like many others have. Even though she is one of the smallest players on the Tour at 5 feet 4 inches, the Kazakhstani player's quickness, reliability, and diverse playing style make her a challenging opponent when she is performing at her best.

In the beginning, the match was going as expected, but things took a different turn at the start of the second set. Putintseva shifted her tactics after losing the first set, positioning herself closer to the net when returning Swiatek's serve. This allowed her to disrupt Swiatek's rhythm and take control of the rallies. The veteran player began hitting powerful shots and using the grass court to her benefit.

An early advantage helped her take a 3-1 lead in the second set, causing Swiatek's game to weaken. Surprisingly, her second serve was not as strong. While Swiatek excelled at hitting the ball from the back of the court, she struggled with her serves, unlike Putintseva who had a delicate touch at the net. Putintseva was quick to capitalize on opportunities to hit powerful groundstrokes.

In the next set, Swiatek quickly lost, causing her to take a long break before the third set. However, this break did not help her change the course of the game or prevent her from making mistakes. Putintseva dominated the beginning of the third set by winning 14 out of 16 points, leading 4-0. Swiatek managed to hold her serve, but she was still struggling to regain control of the game.

In the tennis match between Swiatek and Putintseva, the score was 5-1, 40-40 with Putintseva close to winning. Swiatek managed to hold serve and save two match points with aggressive shots. However, Putintseva eventually won the match with a well-executed drop shot and Swiatek's backhand return error.

In the previous year, Elina Svitolina had a series of ups and downs on her way to the semi-finals. Now, she is experiencing a similar journey, reaching the last 16 after defeating Ons Jabeur. Jabeur, who was the runner-up in the past two years, put up a fight in the second set but Svitolina remained composed and secured a 6-1, 7-6 (4) win.

"It was a close second set. I was trying to concentrate, and it's a great feeling to win the tie-break," Svitolina said. She was playing in front of a Centre Court audience that included Ukrainian soccer legend Andriy Shevchenko.

The tie-break can be unpredictable. Facing a skilled player like Ons, who has reached the finals twice here, can be challenging on grass courts. Despite that, I felt good about my performance and how I navigated through some difficult moments. I am pleased with how I played overall.

Svitolina, who is currently facing Wang Xinyu of China, had her husband, Gaël Monfils, cheering her on in the stands. Monfils had lost in singles to Grigor Dimitrov the day before. Svitolina mentioned, "It was a unique experience for our family. Grigor played exceptionally well and his performance inspired me. Having Gaël here to support me is something special."