Unseeded Harmony Tan overcame her fears of a Wimbledon nightmare on Tuesday (June 28) and turned center court into her personal dreamland by defeating seven-time champion Serena Williams in her first-round bout. The 24-year-old French debut won three sets against the 23-time Grand Slam champion to secure the first win of his career on grass at the expense of the former world number one and advance to the second round.
“It’s a dream because, you know, I saw Serena on TV when I was little,” she said. “My coach, Nathalie Touziat, played him 20 years ago. So, yes, it’s a big generation. He is a legend. I mean, he won 23 Grand Slams. When you played him, I used to get scared. I mean, I was scared when I was on the court, but really happy to be there. ,
A backhand so great that even Serena had to clap #wimbledon , #centrecourt100 pic.twitter.com/816YBpzG4q— Wimbledon (@wimbledon) June 28, 2022
Touziat, who also coaches 2019 US Open champion Bianca Andreescu, has her own history at Wimbledon, finishing as runner-up to Jana Novotna in 1998 when Tan was less than a year old. “He only told me because it’s your first time at Wimbledon,” Tan said of the pre-match advice given to him by Wimbledon.
“You play against Serena on center court. And, yes, just enjoy the match.”
Tan, ranked 115 in the world, did more than that, winning the first set 7–5 against Williams as the American returned to take second, leaving a lone game in the process. As Wimbledon imposed an 11 p.m. curfew, the pair battled toward a third-set tie-break, which Tan eventually won as a tired Williams gave up an early lead to crash out after more than three hours of play. Gave.
The Frenchwoman, who has never progressed past the second round of a Grand Slam, fails to describe how she managed to turn the match in her favor. “I don’t know because I just play every ball like that, adding some slices, some variations, some variety to the game,” she said. “And it works today.”
(with Reuters inputs)