Chris Oddo| @thefanchild | Wednesday, July 2, 2025
Four of the top five seeds failed to enter the third round on the Wimbledon woman’s side, but the sixth seed Madison Keys She sat beautifully and felt that luck might be standing next to her in these championship games.
Keys, who was nearly ousted in his first round against Spain’s Elena Gabriela Ruse, found a way to a disturbing encounter, bounced Serbia’s Olga Danilovic for the ninth time in 11 careers on Wednesday for the ninth in her 11-game career.
She said watching the seeds spread throughout Wimbledon’s first three days was absolutely disturbing for top players.
“I think it adds a little bit of pressure to that when you sit and watch everyone fall,” she said. “I’m very close in the first round, so I feel like I dodged some bullets.”
The second seed Coco Goff, the third seed Jessica Pegula, the fourth seed Jasmine Paulini and the fifth seed Zheng Qinwen all bowed early, and more may appear before the third round begins. Paolini has eliminated 15 of 32 women’s singles seeds after losing to Kamilla Rakhimova on Wednesday.
“I really believe that unpleasant feelings are contagious,” Brad Gilbert commented to ESPN. “You can’t help but feel what’s going on.”
Keys believes fatigue is playing a role for top players in a particularly tough part of the season, with both majors champions in five weeks.
“I honestly think everyone is a little tired, and this season has been a long time,” she said. “It’s hard. It’s been six months. I feel like we’ve all been in a lot of races. So obviously, in theory, people who rank higher in the top are playing more races than others. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. There’s a certain moment in the season that people have to do.”
But Keys will face 37-year-old Laura Siegemund in the third round Friday, who feels the worst is behind her.
“I think this is a personal battle that I have to pass through myself [was important],” she said. “I feel like once I can do that, even seeing all the results that have happened in the past two days will increase the nerve tension, but I feel like I feel a little bit over myself.
“So, yes, I feel like I have a chance to play some of my best tennis now.”
