Harmony Tan, a French newcomer, beat Serena Williams 7-5 1-6 7-6 (7) on Centre Court in her Wimbledon first round women’s singles match on Tuesday. Tan’s life was not simple from the start, since Serena fought hard upon her return.
Tan squandered a match point as the seven-time Wimbledon champion served at 5-6 in the final set, with the roof closed for the final two sets. Serena appeared to have the upper hand, leading 4-0 in the ‘super tiebreak.’
But Tan kept her calm and continued on with her slices and slow ball shots, which tortured her American opponent throughout the game and finally managed to take a 9-7 lead before sealing a win as Williams netted a forehand!
Tan was lauded by fans following her victory, and she even drew the attention of Serena, who was left speechless by her incredible performance.
Tan kept her opponent moving in a short rally with a solid serve, and Serena tried to seal the point with a booming forehand volley. Serena was surprised as the 24-year-old returned it with a strong backhand, and she could only watch it go for a point!
You can watch the video here!
Before her Wimbledon debut, Tan had only stitched up nine Tour wins in her career, none on grass, compared to Serena’s 832. Being a wildcard, her notional ranking is 1,204.
After the match, Tan revealed that she was ’emotional’ and called Serena a ‘superstar’. “I’m so emotional now. Serena is a superstar and when I was young I was watching her so many times on the TV”, she said.
“For my first Wimbledon, it’s wow. Just wow. When I saw the draw I was really scared. Because it’s Serena Williams, she’s a legend. I thought if I could win one or two games it was really good for me”, she further added.
Venus Williams to play mixed doubles
Serena Williams may have exited Wimbledon, but her sister Venus will compete for family pride in the mixed doubles with Britain’s Jamie Murray.
The 42-year-old American is a two-time Grand Slam mixed doubles champion who hasn’t competed on the tour since the Chicago WTA event last August.
However, he won both titles in 1998, with Justin Gimelstob, at the Australian and French Opens. Venus and Bob Bryan finished second in the mixed doubles at Wimbledon in 2006.
Murray is a five-time Slam champion in the event, having won Wimbledon with Jelena Jankovic and Martina Hingis in 2007 and 2017.
Venus and Murray have been given wildcards to this year’s All England Club competition.
They will take on Michael Venus and Alicja Rosolska in the first round.
