Match Reaction

Sabalenka cruises past Branstine on a blistering day at Wimbledon

3m read 30 Jun 2025 6d ago
Aryna Sabalenka
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Summary Generated By AI

On the hottest opening day in Wimbledon history, Aryna Sabalenka barely broke a sweat as she eased past Canadian qualifier Carson Branstine in straight sets.

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WIMBLEDON -- Looking every bit the World No. 1 and the favorite here, Aryna Sabalenka

View Profile eased into the second round Monday with a 6-1, 7-5 win over qualifier Carson Branstine
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.

This year’s Wimbledon championships have begun with the hottest opening day on record, according to the Met Office.

On a record-hot opening day, with temperatures hitting 87 degrees Fahrenheit, Sabalenka was as cool as a refreshing glass of Pimm’s on No. 1 Court, closing out the match in 73 minutes. She’ll face the winner of the Lulu Sun

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match on Wednesday.

Sabalenka has played only two of the past four Wimbledon tournaments -- but made the semifinals both times. The people paid to figure these things out have installed Sabalenka as the one to beat, ahead of Iga Swiatek

View Profile , Elena Rybakina
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and
Coco Gauff
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.

All three of Sabalenka’s major singles titles have come on hard courts. She came close to breaking through on clay at Roland Garros but lost to Coco Gauff

View Profile in a three-set final. She’s determined to give herself another opportunity, on a surface that suits her dynamic and increasingly evolving game.

“I think if she continues working, she definitely has a potential,” Sabalenka said of Branstine. “Very big serving. Honestly in the second set, it was really tough to read her serve. The speed was unbelievable. Yeah, lucky me, I could break her and finish the set. But yeah, it was tough second set.”

Wimbledon: Scores | Order of play | Draw

The first set went about the way you’d expect when the No. 1-ranked player meets a No. 194 qualifier. This was the 24-year-old Canadian’s first Grand Slam main-draw match and was seeking only her second-career win at the Hologic WTA Tour level. She was impressive in qualifying, defeating No. 1 seed Lois Boisson

View Profile -- a surprise semifinalist at Roland Garros -- and Bianca Andreescu
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along the way.

Branstine won only a single game in the first set against Sabalenka, but found herself up 5-4 in the second. Thoughts of an epic Grand Slam upset began to creep into her head.

“When it mattered, she showed up,” Branstine said afterward. “I could have gotten an early break in the second set. I had a break point and then after that, she was on it. Those are the little things that separate the Top 10 from the Top 20, and the Top 20 from the Top 50. Those little details that they take care of so unbelievably well.

“She has a fighting spirit, and even though I’m ranked No. 194 in the world, she went out there in kill mode. She wants to win this tournament, that’s her goal. It was a really cool thing to actually see it in front of my eyes. I was like, 'Wow she’s doing that -- and it’s to me, right now.'"

Sabalenka won six of seven games in a scant 24 minutes. Branstine’s only game came after a 120 mph ace to avoid a shutout, delighting the supportive crowd. After double-faulting on her first set point, an unreturnable serve gave her the frame.

Branstine settled down in the second set, finding a groove in her service games. She was serving at 5-all when Sabalenka finally solved the problem. With Sabalenka moving aggressively forward, Branstine hit a forehand into the net and, suddenly, Sabalenka was serving for the match.

The qualifier finished with seven aces, but won only 11 of her 24 second serves. Sabalenka finished with 17 winners and 18 unforced errors, while Branstine’s numbers were 17 and 26.

Sabalenka is now 24-5 in first-round matches at the Grand Slams and hasn’t lost in that situation in five-and-a-half years, going 19-0. She is a perfect 10-for-10 against qualifiers in majors and has yet to lose a set.

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Summary Generated By AI

On the hottest opening day in Wimbledon history, Aryna Sabalenka barely broke a sweat as she eased past Canadian qualifier Carson Branstine in straight sets.

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