Preview: Wimbledon: Iga Swiatek vs. Danielle Collins - prediction, head-to-head, tournament so far

Iga Swiatek and Danielle Collins face off for the 10th time on the women’s tour, but for the first time on grass, when both players meet in Saturday’s third-round match at Wimbledon.    

Swiatek recovered from a first-set collapse against Caty McNally to claim a second-round win on Thursday, setting up another encounter with Collins, who has yet to drop a set en route to round three’s matchup.

Match preview

Although Swiatek is unlikely to ignore losing a healthy 4-1 first-set lead against Caty McNally, the Polish star’s response to that setback highlighted her growing confidence on grass.

The 24-year-old reached the final in Bad Homburg — her first-ever final on grass and her first in over a year since last year's French Open success — and has carried that momentum into a sixth Wimbledon appearance.

Having now matched her run of reaching the third round for the fifth consecutive year at the All England Club, the five-time Grand Slam champion aims to surpass last year's third-round performance by defeating the women who upset her two months ago in Madrid.

Now at 13-5 overall at the Championships, her least favourite of the Slams, Swiatek is chasing only a third last-16 appearance at SW19.

The Pole holds a 50% third-round record at Wimbledon, winning in 2021 and 2023 and losing in 2022 and last year, further underscoring the 22-time WTA champion's mixed results at the tournament, where she has only ever entered the second week twice.

Aiming to inflict consecutive defeats on the five-time Slam winner is Collins, who upset Swiatek on the clay courts in Madrid to end a six-match losing streak against the former world No. 1.

Although the American is unseeded at the ongoing tournament, the 31-year-old is a former top-10 player who sat just outside the elite rankings at the start of the year.

While Collins’s record at Wimbledon, like Swiatek’s, is unremarkable, she has surged into the third round without dropping a set, having secured wins over Camila Osorio and Veronika Erjavec, dropping five games in each prior victory.

Those wins have reduced fears of Collins exiting early after her limited match action on grass coming into this year's tournament, which included a first-round loss at 's Hertogenbosch, and she now aims to reach the fourth round at SW19 for only the second time.

Thursday’s 6-4, 6-1 win over Erjavec was Collins's ninth win at Wimbledon, improving to 9-6 overall, and she now seeks to reach double figures at the expense of the eighth seed.

Tournament so far

Iga Swiatek:  

First round: vs. Polina Kudermetova 7-5 6-1  

Second round: vs. Caty McNally 5-7 6-2 6-1    

Danielle Collins:  

First round: vs. Camila Osorio 6-3 6-2  

Second round: vs. Veronika Erjavec 6-4 6-1 

Head To Head

Rome (2025) - Round of 32: Collins 6-1 7-5

Paris Olympics (2024) - Quarter-finals: Swiatek 6-1 2-6 4-1 ret.

Indian Wells (2024) - Round of 64: Swiatek 6-3 6-0

Australian Open (2024) - Second round: Swiatek 6-4 3-6 6-4

Cincinnati (2023) - Round of 32: Swiatek 6-1 6-0

Montreal (2023) - Quarter-finals: Swiatek 6-3 4-6 6-2

Doha (2023) - Round of 16: Swiatek 6-0 6-1

Australian Open (2022) - Semi-finals: Collins 6-4 6-1

Adelaide (2021) - Quarter-finals: Swiatek 6-2 3-0 ret

Although Swiatek leads Collins 7-2 in their head-to-head, the American has made things interesting in their recent encounters.

After retiring injured in the deciding set at the Paris Olympics last year, the former world No. 7 beat the Polish star on clay in Madrid in May, ending a run of six defeats against the five-time Grand Slam champion.

Having faced off seven times on hard courts — Swiatek leads 6-1 — and twice on clay — both women are tied 1-1 — the players will contest their first match on grass on Saturday, adding another layer of intrigue.

We say: Swiatek to win in three sets

While Collins has got under Swiatek’s skin in recent matches, Swiatek has had a stronger grass season heading into their first meeting on the surface.    

Although both women have little pedigree at Wimbledon, the Polish star’s impressive performances at Bad Homburg and so far in London suggest that she will edge proceedings and secure a last-16 spot against Clara Tauson or 2022 champion Elena Rybakina.

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