British teenage trio handed Wimbledon wild cards for main draw
Teenagers Hannah Klugman, Mimi Xu and Mika Stojsavljevic will make their senior Wimbledon debuts at this summer's Championships after being awarded main-draw wild cards.
Klugman and Stojsavljevic, both 16, and 17-year-old Xu are at the forefront of an exciting generation of British youngsters.
Stojsavljevic won the US Open junior title last year and Klugman, who made the final round of Wimbledon qualifying 12 months ago, reached the French Open girls' final earlier this month.
Xu, meanwhile, has beaten two top-100 players on grass this month and is close to breaking into the top 300 in the women's game.
The trio will be joined in the main draw by more experienced campaigners in Heather Watson, Harriet Dart, Jodie Burrage and Fran Jones.
Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova has also been given a wild card after returning to the sport following the birth of her son.
Seven British men have been given wild cards into the main draw, including veteran Dan Evans, whose ranking has slipped to 199.
Jack Pinnington Jones and Johannus Monday – the latest British players to come through the US college system – will both make their debuts, while 19-year-old former junior champion Henry Searle has been given a wild card for a second year.
Jay Clarke, Oliver Crawford and George Loffhagen complete the septet.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
11 minutes ago
- The Independent
Sabalenka extends ‘olive branch' to Gauff after French Open comments
Tennis stars Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka have publicly dispelled rumors of animosity by dancing together at Wimbledon and sharing the moment on social media. The pair, who recently contested the French Open final, posted videos of themselves grooving on Centre Court and lip-syncing outside the All England Club. Gauff wrote: 'the olive branch was extended and accepted! we're good so you guys should be too.' Their public display of camaraderie follows a controversial period after Gauff defeated Sabalenka in the French Open final three weeks prior.
BBC News
11 minutes ago
- BBC News
'There's hope for me on grass' - Swiatek loses Bad Homburg final
Five-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek says she "showed there is hope" for her on grass despite losing to American Jessica Pegula in the Bad Homburg Open world number one Swiatek was playing in her first grass-court final but was edged out 6-4 7-5 by being a former junior champion at Wimbledon, Swiatek has struggled on the quicker grass surface in her professional career. Her 22 WTA titles to date have either been won on hard courts (12) or clay (10).Poland's four-time French Open and one-time US Open champion reached the quarter-finals of Wimbledon in 2023 but has not gone beyond the fourth round in any of her other four appearances has appeared to turn a corner in Germany this week, recording her first victory over a top-10 player on grass by crushing last year's Wimbledon runner-up Jasmine Paolini of Italy 6-1 6-3 in the semi-finals."This tournament shows there is hope for me on grass," said Swiatek, who appeared to be on the verge of tears after her loss. "I'm happy we can play here and I'm happy I could prove that." World number three Pegula, who won her third title of 2025, told Swiatek in her on-court interview: "I know you say you can't play on grass, but trust me you can still play pretty good on grass. Cut yourself some slack."Good luck for next week, I know it's a short turnaround for both of us."Swiatek faces Russian Polina Kudermetova in the first round of Wimbledon on Tuesday while Pegula is up against Italian Elisabetta Cocciaretto on the same day.A tough draw means Swiatek could take on former winner Elena Rybakina in the fourth round of Wimbledon and French Open champion Coco Gauff in the theory Pegula has a much kinder run, although she could face surprise Queen's Club champion Tatjana Maria in round two.
The Independent
17 minutes ago
- The Independent
Aryna Sabalenka ‘learnt a lot' from reaction to losing the French Open final
World number one Aryna Sabalenka has been able to clear the air with Coco Gauff after her emotional reaction to losing the French Open final to the American earlier this month. The Belarusian was heavily criticised after attributing the defeat to her own mistakes rather than Gauff's performance, and apologised both privately and publicly for describing the match as the worst final she had played. The two players looked to have put those hostilities firmly behind them in social media clips posted from Wimbledon on Friday, and Sabalenka was contrite in accepting the negative response her comments prompted. She said: 'I've always been really good with Coco. Honestly, as I said in the statement and I messaged to her, I didn't really want to offend her. 'I was just completely upset with myself, and emotions got over me. I just completely lost it. 'I did what I did. I get what I deserve, I believe. It was a tough time for me. The lesson is learned. 'Honestly, I'm kind of glad what happened to me at Paris, because I was able to learn a lot. 'I was able to sit back and be open to myself, not just to ignore some things. I think I realised a lot of things about myself in those last stages of the tournament. 'We spoke with the team. I think we learned something. I really hope it will never happen again.' Sabalenka, who is up against Canadian Carson Branstine in the first round, has no qualms about facing Gauff again should the two end up involved in a rematch in the Wimbledon final. 'If I make it to the finals, I don't care (who I play), but also I would love to face Coco,' she said. 'If she's going to be there, I'm happy because I want to get the revenge!'. Sabalenka has been limbering up for the tournament by having a hit with both Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner, with the former happy to offer advice drawn from his vast experience. She said: 'Novak is the best. First of all, I was able to hit with him, which not every guy would be able to do. Then you can chat with him, he will give his honest advice. 'It's amazing to hear opinions of such a legend. We were just chatting about stuff that I'm struggling with a little bit. I'm really thankful for the advice he gave me. 'It was a 30-minute chat. If you give opportunity to Novak to talk, he's not going to stop! I wish I could stay there for four hours and just keep chatting, but we all have our schedule. 'Honestly, I hit with Jannik for like, I don't know, 10 minutes – I was exhausted! 'An hour with Novak…now I'm recovered. I needed a day of recovery but it was a great experience. When you see someone like Jannik or Novak, you learn from them. You reflect what they do on court. It was great for me.'
