Monday, June 30

Sports Mole previews Tuesday’s Wimbledon first-round match between Barbora Krejcikova and Alexandra Eala, including predictions, form and their head-to-head record.

Defending Wimbledon women’s champion Barbora Krejcikova aims to avoid an early exit against emerging talent Alexandra Eala.

The Filipina enters her Championships debut fresh from a disappointing Eastbourne Open final defeat, but she faces Krejcikova, who has played sparingly on the women’s tour in 2025 due to a back injury and withdrew at Eastbourne because of a similar problem.

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Match preview

Krejcikova had never advanced beyond the fourth round at Wimbledon until last year, en route to her second singles Grand Slam title after winning the 2021 French Open.

The doubles specialist, an eight-time women’s singles champion, begins her title defence after an injury-plagued season, casting doubt over her prospects of securing a third major.

The 29-year-old has played only six matches on the tour in 2025, missing the first months of the season, including the Australian Open, the Middle East swing and the Sunshine Double, before returning just before Roland Garros.

After her comeback in Strasbourg ended early to Magda Linette, the world No. 17 secured her first win of the season against Tatjana Maria in the opening round of Roland Garros before losing in straight sets to Veronika Kudermetova in the second round.

The two-time Grand Slam champion's grass season started with a defeat to Rebecca Sramkova at Queen's, but Krejcikova fought back with back-to-back three-set wins at Eastbourne last week, defeating two British players, Harriet Dart and Jodie Burrage, en route to the quarter-finals.

However, a thigh injury prevented the 29-year-old from participating in that quarter-final against Varvara Gracheva, raising questions about her physical condition ahead of her title defence.

Eala will look to capitalise if Krejcikova is physically affected, eager to build on a breakthrough year on the tour, which recently saw her reach her first WTA final on grass at Eastbourne.

Having come through qualifying, the 20-year-old won four consecutive matches to reach the final and held match points in the tense loss to Maya Joint.

Should the young player shake off the disappointment of her first tour-level final loss, she should back herself to cause an upset over the eight-time WTA champion.

The world No. 74 already has a history of defeating top-ranked opponents, having beaten three former Grand Slam champions — Jelena Ostapenko, Madison Keys and Iga Swiatek — in Miami on her way to the semi-finals, and aims to stun the somewhat rusty defending champion.

After losing in qualifying to Lulu Sun last year, Eala arrives at her Grand Slam debut with a season record of 26-16 and a 4-2 record in main-draw matches on grass — 8-2 overall on the surface in 2025 — and will be confident facing a two-time Major winner who has been under-prepared.

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Head To Head

Krejcikova and Eala will meet for the first time on the WTA Tour, with the winner claiming a 1-0 lead in their head-to-head.

Unlike the eight-time titlist, the 20-year-old has played more matches this season, holding a 26-16 record; Krejcikova is 3-3 entering her seventh match of 2025, underlining her limited action this year.

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We say: Eala to win in three sets

Tuesday’s match could depend on Eala managing the pressure of Centre Court in her Grand Slam debut and moving past her Eastbourne final defeat, but her current form suggests she is ready for her first Slam victory.    

While this prediction may raise a few eyebrows, the Filipina, who has surprised top-ranked players before, is seen as capable of shocking Krejcikova in the opening round of the Czech star’s title defence.  

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