NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
American tennis pro Jessica Pegula suffered a stunning and early exit from Wimbledon in the first round on Tuesday when she was defeated in under an hour by 116th-ranked Italian, Elisabetta Cocciaretto.
Cocciaretto, 24, managed to pull off her first-ever top five win at Wimbledon with ease, defeating Pegula in straight sets 6-2, 6-3.
Elisabetta Cocciaretto of Italy celebrates winning her women’s first round singles match against Jessica Pegula of the U.S. at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London on Tuesday, July 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Joanna Chan)
“To play here in such an unbelievable stadium and such an unbelievable tournament, it’s a dream come true for me. I was so pumped to play Wimbledon this year,” Cocciaretto said during her on-court interview following the match.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS
“I played a really great champion. She’s an unbelievable player, she’s a great example for us.”
Pegula’s loss comes just days after she defeated Iga Swiatek in straight sets on grass to win the Bad Homburg Open in Germany. Unlike in her match against the five-time Grand Slam champion, Pegula struggled against Cocciaretto’s aggressive play, hitting only five winners and making 24 unforced errors.
Jessica Pegula plays a shot against Poland’s Iga Swiatek during the final match at the WTA tennis tournament in Bad Homburg, Germany, on Saturday, June 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
CARLOS ALCARAZ RUSHES OVER TO HELP ILL SPECTATOR AS RECORD-BREAKING HEAT TAKES TOLL ON WIMBLEDON MATCH
“For this to happen today, it’s disappointing. I don’t know how else to put it,” she said after the match. “I’m upset that I wasn’t able to turn anything around. But at the same time, I do feel like she played kind of insane. Hats off to her. Kudos to her for playing at a high level that I couldn’t match it today.”
Pegula’s bad luck in the first round, which saw six of her first seven appearances at majors result in a first-round loss, came to an end in 2020, when she last lost to top-ranked women’s pro Aryna Sabalenka at the French Open.
Jessica Pegula of the U.S. leaves the court after losing to Elisabetta Cocciaretto of Italy during their women’s first round singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London on Tuesday, July 1, 2025. (Ben Whitley/PA via AP)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Tuesday’s match was reminiscent of those early struggles.
“This is definitely probably the worst result I’ve had all year,” Pegula said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.