Wimbledon: Second seed Rybakina survives scare against debutant Boisson

Wimbledon's second seed and 2022 champion, Elena Rybakina, survived a tough first-round scare against French newcomer Lois Boisson, ultimately winning 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 on Tuesday. The match, played on Court One, saw Rybakina, ranked 152 places above Boisson, deliver an unconvincing performance marked by numerous unforced errors.

“

It was a really difficult match, also not coming from too many wins. I had to really fight.

Boisson, who had a notable run to the French Open semi-finals last year, put up a strong fight against the Russian-born Kazakh player. Rybakina admitted to hitting 13 unforced errors in the second set alone, adding to the 12 from the first and 10 in the third. "I need to improve quite a lot, but I'm happy to get another opportunity," Rybakina stated after the match.

“

I need to improve quite a lot, but I'm happy to get another opportunity.

The 27-year-old appeared to be on track for a comfortable victory after the first set. However, Boisson, who had yet to secure a win on grass courts, dramatically shifted the momentum in the second set, leaving the outcome uncertain. Boisson took a medical timeout for her left calf at 4-1 in the second set and later grimaced after a fall in the third set while facing break points.

“

My serve percentage wasn't the greatest so when she was getting good first serves in, it wasn't easy to break her.

Rybakina eventually secured the crucial break in the third set and served out the match. She acknowledged that her serve percentage was not optimal, making it difficult to break Boisson's serve when the Frenchwoman delivered strong first serves. Rybakina's coaching team offered encouragement during a medical timeout, urging her to maintain energy and improve her footwork, which she credited for helping her manage the difficult match.

“

They were just trying to tell me to keep on going, bring the energy, better footwork and I'm glad I managed.