Iga Swiatek began the defense of her Wimbledon title on Tuesday much the way her year has gone, doing enough without ever looking certain of it. The No. 3 seed dropped a set before beating American Taylor Townsend 6-1, 2-6, 6-3 on Centre Court, a two-hour, two-minute opener that ended with the six-time Grand Slam champion sitting with her head buried in a towel.
A year ago she lost just one set across seven matches on her way to the trophy, dismantling Amanda Anisimova 6-0, 6-0 in the final. This time the margins were far thinner.
A defense launched from a low. Swiatek arrived at the All England Club without a title or a final to her name in 2026. She reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open and the fourth round at Roland Garros, where she has won four times, and her deepest run of the season was a semifinal in Rome. She lost her only previous grass match of the year last week in Bad Homburg, to Emma Navarro. The season has brought change off the court as well: Swiatek parted with coach Wim Fissette in March, months after he guided her to the 2025 title, and added Francisco Roig, a longtime member of Rafael Nadal’s team.
The Townsend test. Townsend, ranked No. 79 but a three-time Grand Slam doubles champion at home at the net, turned the match in the second set as Swiatek’s level dipped and the double faults mounted; she finished with nine. The defending champion needed a 21-minute opening game in the decider, in which she saved four break points, to steady herself, then broke for a 4-2 lead and served out the match to love.
It was the first time Swiatek had dropped a set in a Grand Slam first round since Wimbledon 2019, the only opening-round exit of her major career. She said afterward that it had not been “a season where everything went how I wanted.”
What it means. No woman has successfully defended the Wimbledon singles title since Serena Williams in 2016. Swiatek’s route does not ease from here: she meets 2021 finalist Karolina Pliskova next, a first grass-court meeting between them, with a possible third-round tie against Serena Williams or Alexandra Eala beyond that. On Tuesday’s evidence, the form that produced last year’s near-flawless fortnight is not yet back. Whether it returns in time will decide how long this defense lasts.
