Wimbledon 2026: Katie Swan’s “pure relief” as she moves into the second round in first Championships back from injury
• 4 minute read
Katie Swan bagged her second career win at SW19, in only her first appearance in three years following a series of injuries.
The British No.6 became the first Brit to book her place in the second round of Wimbledon after beating Irina-Camelia Begu 6-4, 6-4 in an hour and 24 minutes on Court 16.
Swan only returned to the sport last year following a long-term back injury that forced her to consider retirement. In what has proved to be a successful comeback, the Brit – who was unranked at the start of 2025 – has picked up 6 ITF titles and risen to 196 in the world rankings.
The 27-year-old kicked off her grass court season at the Lexus Birmingham Open following back-to-back ITF titles, before reaching the quarter-finals at the Lexus Ilkley Open.
The win today marks her second main draw win at Wimbledon against Begu – the same opponent she moved past in her maiden win in 2018.
“It was pure relief being able to finish that match”, the Brit said following her win. “Especially being 40-0 up and then being pegged back and saving break point and being able to get over the line. It means so much.
“It's been a rough few years for me, getting back to a point where I can play a slam again. I played Begu here eight years ago, and that was the last time I won a match here. It's kind of full circle to play her again and win again today. So it means a lot.”
Her successful season helped the Brit received a wild card to the Grand Slam main draw – her first appearance at the event since a first round exit in 2023.
After a long spell away from the game and the hard work behind-the-scenes to return to this point, Swan was delighted to get the victory at her home Slam.
“It did feel like a full-circle moment for me. There is a lot that's happened. Feels like a different life eight years ago me to today.
“In a way it's kind of felt quite special to play her again here. It gave me, I know it was eight years ago, but it still gave me a sense of confidence that I had beaten her before. I knew she would remember that, too.”
Following today’s win, the Brit has jumped 26 places in the live WTA rankings as she moves closer to re-entering the top 150 and her career-high ranking of 118.
“My next goal will be winning my round two match and hopefully getting into Round three for the first time.
“I’d still love to break into the top 100. That's always been a goal of mine in tennis. I'm a long way off still at the moment, but I'm getting closer each week that I play.
“I'm happy that I'm at least putting myself in the position to play bigger tournaments and playing in the Grand Slams again.”
It’s a far cry from the player who was looking to step away from the professional level of the sport and take on coaching opportunities to continue her career.
“I think it was hard for me really to move past tennis, because in my head, I didn't really want to stop. I just felt like it was being forced on me because of my back issues.
"I never fell out of love with the sport. I just couldn't stay healthy for long enough.”
Swan held her own throughout a tight match – dropping just 12 points on serve while capitalising on her opponent’s 22 errors across the match.
The Brit was rewarded with the crucial break at 5-4 in the first to set up the chance to serve for the opener – which she did with a hold to love.
She drove the momentum into the second where she got the early break, and held her nerve to serve out the victory on fifth match point.
The Brit is in for a tricky second round as she’ll face the Lexus Eastbourne Open champion Madison Keys, who fought back from a set down to see off her compatriot Kayla Day.
The pair have met twice before with the American winning on both occasions – one occasion fell in the first round of Wimbledon in 2021 where Keys won 6-3, 6-4 so the Brit will be looking for an upset.
“I'm just so overwhelmingly happy to be in round two. For me, this is, in the context of my career, this is a huge moment.
“She's a great player who is a Slam champion. She won Eastbourne last week, so it's going to be a really difficult match. But the last time we played, it was very close.
“I hope we get a good court and then I can go out there and give my best and hopefully get the crowd going and see if I can get through that one.”
How to watch Katie Swan versus Madison Keys
You can watch Katie Swan take on Madison Keys in her second round match across BBC Channels and BBC iPlayer.
