'Would've been nicer at Centre': Elena Rybakina expresses disappointment over court scheduling at Wimbledon

Elena Rybakina expressed disappointment about being relegated to Court 2 for her Wimbledon third-round match. The 2022 champion was eliminated by 23rd seed Clara Tauson in a match that opened the day's play on Court No. 2, the tournament's third most important court.

Three other women's matches were scheduled on the more prominent courts. On Centre Court, five-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek faced Danielle Collins, while on Court No. 1, Mirra Andreeva (No. 7) played Hailey Baptiste, followed by 10th seed Emma Navarro against defending champion Barbora Krejcikova (17th).

The decision to send Rybakina—a former champion—to Court 2 raised some eyebrows. In the first round, Rybakina had already played her debut against Elina Avanesian on one of the outer courts, while her second-round match against Maria Sakkari was held on Court 1.

Beyond the specific courts Rybakina played on, it's always noteworthy to see a former champion outside the main stadiums. In her press conference—after the 7-6(6), 6-3 defeat to Tauson—Rybakina addressed the scheduling of her match and admitted she expected to play on a more significant court.

"I was expected probably to be on Court One, but when I saw it’s Court Two, and there is nothing else we can do about this situation, of course it would have been nicer if the game were played at Centre, but still many players are sitting."

However, Rybakina clarified that the court did not influence her defeat against Tauson. Rybakina committed a total of 31 unforced errors and had only a 53% first-serve percentage. "This isn't my first time playing in another Court, it's the same court for everyone. Same as my opponent, so it didn't matter in the end."

In her fifth appearance at Wimbledon, this is the first time Rybakina has failed to reach the second week. The Kazakh player will drop a couple of positions in the rankings after not defending the semifinals she reached in 2024 and is currently positioned as world No. 13. As for Tauson, she will face none other than Iga Swiatek in the fourth round, who just defeated Collins.