London, June 30 (IANS) The 2025 Wimbledon Championship kicked off in superb fashion as Benjamin Bonzi wasted little time in notching the first major upset by stunning ninth seed Daniil Medvedev 7-6(2), 3-6, 7-6(3), 6-2 in the men’s singles first round here on Monday.

Ranked ninth in the ATP ranking, Medvedev has had a horrid run in Grand Slams this year. His first-round Wimbledon exit follows after a second-round defeat to Learner Tien at the Australian Open and a first-round loss to Cameron Norrie at Roland Garros.

Competing on the hottest opening day ever recorded at the grass-court major, according to the Met Office, the World No. 64 Bonzi’s precision and patience from the back of the court proved too much for Medvedev during their first-round clash. He also overpowered Medvedev with a relentless barrage of serving as per ATP.

“This is special for me today. This is my first Top 10 win at a Slam. Obviously, it is always special at this tournament. The atmosphere, all the courts, and the grass, everything really. I love this place, so it’s very special and Daniil is a great player.

“He has reached two semifinals. I knew it was a tough match, but sometimes it is better to play this kind of player in the first round. Anything can happen, so I’m very happy with the win,” said Bonzi in his on-court interview.

With his three-hour, seven-minute victory, Bonzi is into the second round at Wimbledon for the third time in his career. It marks the first time in seven appearances that Medvedev has failed to advance past the first round.

Bonzi struck cleanly from the baseline and found great success behind his own serve, which proved clinical in the first and third-set tie-breaks. After improving to 2-0 in his Head2Head series with Medvedev and earning the second Top 10 win of his career, the Frenchman will next face Vit Kopriva or Jordan Thompson.

–IANS

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