Katie Swan is out of Wimbledon at the first round for the third year in a row.
Facing a difficult draw against the 14th seed and reigning Olympic women’s singles champion Belinda Bencic, 24-year-old Swan lost 5-7, 2-6 and posted a disappointing first-serve percentage of 56 percent.
Swan broke for 3-2 in the first set but Bencic broke back immediately, and from then on the Swiss was the dominant player in a closely contested first set which ended 7-5 to Bencic.
The British No6 had similar difficulty in the second set, matching Bencic for power but struggling to defend when Bencic found the corners smartly. Serving to stay in the match at 5-2 down, Swan was broken to love despite the crowd rallying behind her.
It marks the third year in succession wildcard Swan has been defeated in the first round in SW19.
Bencic said after defeating Swan: “I was aware it was going to be a difficult task. It’s my first time playing against a Brit here. Today was really tricky because of the wind. For both players, it was about putting the ball in the court early.”
Earlier, British No2 Jodie Burrage reached the second round of Wimbledon for the first time in her career, while fellow Brit Harriet Dart fell to 20-year-old Diane Parry of France.
