Former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina has exited the tournament in the third round after a 7-6 (7-4), 6-1 defeat to Belgium's Elise Mertens on Saturday.
Rybakina had been aiming to win a second Wimbledon title after lifting the Australian Open crown in January. The world number two was unable to repeat her 2022 triumph as the 25th seed, Mertens, produced a commanding display on Court One.
The 27-year-old Rybakina also suffered an early exit from the recent French Open after a second-round defeat to Yuliia Starodubtseva. The Kazakhstan player, who was born in Russia, won the Wimbledon title four years ago with victory over Ons Jabeur. However, she has now failed to progress beyond the third round in each of her last two appearances at the tournament.
Mertens, meanwhile, is a two-time Wimbledon doubles champion and has reached the last 16 of the singles event for the fourth time. The Belgian will next face 21st seed Marie Bouzkova for a place in the quarter-finals.
Mertens' best singles performance at a Grand Slam remains her run to the Australian Open semi-finals in 2018.
