More than a quarter of the seeds eliminated in the first round of Wimbledon 2026

Diego Jiménez Rubio | 30 Jun 2026 | 23.37

Fran Cerúndolo, seeded players eliminated at Wimbledon 2026. Photo: gettyimages

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There are no easy matches; the circuit's competitiveness is at its peak, and the grass only serves to favor surprises. That is what can be inferred from what happened in the first round of Wimbledon 2026, with the fall of a total of 17 seeded players, counting both the men's and women's draws. It is a significant number, and some of them were strong contenders to achieve important things at the All England Lawn Tennis Club, so it is worth reviewing who will be packing their bags much earlier than expected.

The first thing to highlight is that a total of 10 of the eliminated seeded players are men, with the men's draw being where the notable player culling has been greater. It is also impossible to overlook some significant disappointments among the women, with Elina Svitolina's being the most notable, but the impact of the surprises is greater, both qualitatively and quantitatively, among the men.

Undoubtedly, the most outstanding is the defeat of Ben Shelton, who succumbed to Virtanen, but few expected that the reigning Queen's champion, Fran Cerúndolo, would exit the tournament at the first hurdle. The defeat of Andrey Rublev at the hands of Safiullin is curious and significant, as well as the curse of Ugo Humbert against Bergs, who beat him in the Eastbourne final and, a few days later, defeated him again at Wimbledon.

It is important to remember that two matches with seeded players are still pending resolution, such as those of Flavio Cobolli, who leads two sets to one against Navone, and that of Frances Tiafoe, against Atmane, with the American leading two sets to one in the match.