London, UK, 1 July 2025 | Rhys de Deugd

For the third year in a row, on Court 9 at Wimbledon, Jordan Thompson has come back from two sets to love down to advance to the second round.

In his first match since withdrawing from Queen’s due to a back injury, the Aussie found himself on the brink of defeat against Czech player Vit Kopriva, struggling to move freely around the court.

But in true Thompson fashion, he gritted his teeth, battled through the pain and clawed his way back to secure a dramatic 3-6 4-6 6-3 7-6(1) 6-1 victory.

“I’m probably on the sidelines after Wimbledon, so I’m just doing everything I can to play at this great place,” Thompson admitted after the win.

“I just thought, (in) five sets, hopefully I’d get better and better. (I) managed to sneak a break in the third, clawed out a tough fourth set, and just took the momentum.”

Channeling his Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt with a gritty performance, Thompson even paid tribute to Hewitt, whom he turned to him in the crowd after match point.

“He’s always there for me, Rusty. So I thought I had to acknowledge that he was there. Gave him his own celebration and turned the hat backwards,” he said. “I can’t appreciate what he does enough.”

Thompson was the only Australian winner of the eight competing on Monday at the All England Club.

James Duckworth was also a part of a five-set thriller on Day 1 of Wimbledon, as he pushed 25th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime before falling just short of a notable upset.

No.20 seed Alexei Popyrin was upstaged in four sets by local wildcard Arthur Fery, while Chris O’Connell was unable to overcome French qualifier Adrian Mannarino, losing to the wily grasscourter in straight sets.

On the women’s side, two-time quarterfinalist Ajla Tomljanovic pushed Anastasia Pavlyuchenckova to the brink before fading in three, while qualifier Talia Gibson performed valiantly in her Wimbledon debut, testing Naomi Osaka in two tight sets.

Another Wimbledon debutant, Kim Birrell, found last year’s semifinalist Donna Vekic too tough, while Olivia Gadecki fell to Argentine lucky loser Solana Sierra.

AUSSIES IN ACTION: WIMBLEDON

DAY 1 RESULTS

Gentlemen’s singles, first round

Jordan Thompson (AUS) d Vit Kopriva (CZE) 3-6 4-6 6-3 7-6(1) 6-1
[Q] Adrian Mannarino (FRA) d Chris O’Connell (AUS) 6-2 6-4 6-3
[25] Felix Auger-Aliassime (CAN) d James Duckworth (AUS) 6-2 3-6 6-7(2) 6-4 6-4
[WC] Arthur Fery (GBR) d [20] Alexei Popyrin (AUS) 6-4 6-1 4-6 6-4

Ladies’ singles, first round

[22] Donna Vekic (CRO) d Kimberly Birrell (AUS) 6-0 6-4
[LL] Solana Sierra (ARG) d Olivia Gadecki (AUS) 6-2 7-6(8)
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova d Ajla Tomljanovic (AUS) 4-6 6-3 6-2
Naomi Osaka (JPN) d [Q] Talia Gibson (AUS) 6-4 7-6(4)

COMING UP ON DAY 2

Ladies’ singles, first round

[16] Daria Kasatkina (AUS) v Emiliana Arango (COL) – First match, Court 14
Maya Joint (AUS) v [19] Liudmila Samsonova – Second match, Court 18
Priscilla Hon (AUS) v [18] Ekaterina Alexandrova – First match, Court 17

Gentlemen’s singles, first round

[11] Alex de Minaur (AUS) v Roberto Carballes Baena (ESP) – First match, Court 18
Rinky Hijikata (AUS) v David Goffin (BEL) – Fourth match, Court 5
Aleksandar Vukic (AUS) v Tseng Chun-Hsin (TPE) – First match, Court 5
Adam Walton (AUS) v Arthur Cazaux (FRA) – First match, Court 6
[Q] James McCabe (AUS) v Fabian Marozsan (HUN) – First match, Court 11
[Q] Alex Bolt (AUS) v [10] Ben Shelton (USA) – Fourth match, No.2 Court