French Open finalist Chwalinska crashes out of Wimbledon

Maja Chwalinska in action against Mananchaya Sawangkaew during their women’s singles first-round match at the 2026 Wimbledon Championships. (AFP pic)

LONDON: French Open finalist Maja Chwalinska crashed to a shock Wimbledon first-round defeat against Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew on Monday after suffering an injury on match point.

Just weeks after her fairytale run as a qualifier at Roland Garros, Chwalinska was unable to recapture her clay-court magic on the grass of the All England Club.

The Polish 20th seed, beaten by Mirra Andreeva in the French Open final, took the first set against Sawangkaew but crumbled over the final two sets as the world number 164 clinched a memorable 2-6, 7-5, 6-2 victory.

Chwalinska said the tie began to slip away from her when she sustained an ankle injury in a failed attempt to convert a match point in the second set.

“I fell and I felt my ankle. I wanted to continue, but it definitely didn’t help me later on,” Chwalinska said.

“It’s Wimbledon. I don’t want to retire in Wimbledon. I got cramps everywhere. I don’t take a huge risk on my health, it’s gonna be okay.

“But, yeah, I think I would have many regrets if I were to retire, so I just wanted to continue.”