Elena Rybakina's road to Wimbledon starts strong with debut win over resilient Heather Watson

Elena Rybakina secured a hard-fought victory in her grass-court debut at the WTA 500 Queen's Club Championships, overcoming local favorite Heather Watson 6-4, 6-3. The former Wimbledon champion started her grass-swing campaign on the right foot against a tricky opponent.

Watson's world No. 164 ranking doesn't truly reflect her capabilities on grass courts, a surface she's very comfortable on. The Brit had battled through qualifying and then eliminated Yulia Putintseva (No. 27) in straight sets in the first round, but she couldn't deliver another upset for the home crowd against the fourth seed.

First Set: Rybakina seizes opportunity

The match began evenly, with both players holding serve well. Rybakina, in particular, seemed almost impenetrable on her first serve, winning 83% of those points. However, the first break opportunities went to Watson, who squandered two chances in the fourth game.

Things remained tied until 3-3, when Rybakina capitalized on her first break chance of the match to take the lead. The Kazakh won three consecutive games and ultimately closed out the set on her serve 6-4, winning 69% of her service points compared to Watson's 61%.

Second Set: Rybakina maintains control

Rybakina came out determined to press her advantage from the start of the second set. Watson's first service game was the longest of the match, featuring 16 points before Rybakina finally secured her third break. With her own serve, she took a 2-0 lead and then clung to strong service games to maintain her advantage.

When Rybakina went up 4-2 on her serve, Watson faltered on hers, giving her opponent a couple of break opportunities. The Kazakh once again seized the moment under pressure and secured another break. The former world No. 3 saved up to 5 break points against her to close out the match on her second match point, taking the victory 6-4, 6-2.

The former Wimbledon champion will face on quarterfinals, Germany's Tatjana Maria, another opponent who consistently performs well on grass courts. The former Wimbledon semifinalist has already dispatched two Grand Slam finalists, Leylah Fernandez and sixth seed Karolína Muchová, on her way to this stage.

Match Statistics Watson vs. Rybakina