Last remaining French player in contention, Parry exits Wimbledon in the third round

Diane Parry had a chance to make her mark at Wimbledon. After the early exits of several seeded players, the Frenchwoman—who had already defeated Petra Martic (4-6, 6-3, 6-2) and Diana Shnaider (6-4, 6-1)—faced Britain’s Sonay Kartal, who had notably eliminated Jelena Ostapenko in the first round.

Despite the crowd’s support for the world No. 51, Parry started strong, leading 4-1 in the first set. But the momentum shifted from that point onward. Kartal, who took time to settle into the match, found her rhythm, while Parry struggled to maintain her dominance.

Kartal went on to win 11 of the last 13 games, sealing the victory (6-4, 6-2 in 1 hour and 22 minutes). The British player advances to the round of 16 at Wimbledon for the first time in her career at age 23. She will face Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova for a spot in the quarterfinals.

Having lost to Coco Gauff in the third round of Wimbledon last year, Kartal has now reached the second week of a Grand Slam for the first time. She becomes the fifth British woman in the 21st century to make it this far on the London grass, joining Laura Robson, Heather Watson, Johanna Konta, and Emma Raducanu.

As the only Frenchwoman left in the women’s singles draw by the third round, Parry bows out. A qualifier ranked 118th upon arriving in London, the 22-year-old can take solace in temporarily climbing 24 spots, which would virtually return her to the top 100 (94th).