Defending Ladies Wimbledon Champion Markéta Vondroušová Bounced In Shocking First-Round Upset

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The 2024 Wimbledon tournament is just over one day old and we already have a massive upset. Markéta Vondroušová, the defending Ladies Singles Champion last year, lost in the first round to Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in straight sets. 

Vondroušová entered the tournament as the seventh-favorite to repeat as champion (+1600) and she was a massive favorite (-700) to defeat Bouzas Maneiro in the first round. 

But that didn't happen. It wasn't close, either. Bouzas Maneiro won in straight sets (6-4, 6-2) and took just over an hour to close out the defending champion. 

Vondroušová became just the third defending champion to lose in the first round in the Open Era and the first woman since 1994 when Steffi Graf suffered the same fate.

It is worth noting that Vondroušová suffered an injury two weeks ago during a tournament in Berlin and there were questions about whether or not she would be able to play in Wimbledon this year. 

Still, it's the first major upset of the 2024 tournament. 

Iga Świątek and Elena Rybakina are co-favorites to win the Ladies Singles Championship this year, with both at +320. American Coco Gauff sits just behind those two women at +400.

Gauff is the second seed in the women's draw and easily won her first round match. Another American, Jessica Pegula, also had no trouble dispatching her first-round opponent at Wimbledon. 

Defending Wimbledon Champion Markéta Vondroušová endured a shocking defeat in the first round of this year's tournament to Jessica Bouzas Maneiro.

Defending Wimbledon Champion Markéta Vondroušová endured a shocking defeat in the first round of this year's tournament to Jessica Bouzas Maneiro.

(Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)

Pegula is the third-seeded lady in the tournament and has +1600 odds to win the tournament. 

Gauff won the 2023 U.S. Open, her only Grand Slam victory. Pegula has never gotten past the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam tournament. 

This is a fairly wide-open year, particularly with players eyeing the upcoming Paris Summer Olympics. It's a great opportunity for an American woman to break through to capture the Wimbledon crown. 

The last American woman to win the prestigious tournament was Serena Williams in 2015.  

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Dan began his sports media career at ESPN, where he survived for nearly a decade. Once the Stockholm Syndrome cleared, he made his way to OutKick. He is secure enough in his masculinity to admit he is a cat-enthusiast with three cats, one of which is named "Brady" because his wife wishes she were married to Tom instead of him.