The Wimbledon championships are now officially over, and given it has now been a few days since the finals were played and the winners were crowned, it has provided ample time for reflection.
And, whilst there were plenty of winners across the two weeks, those who claimed the titles aside, it did also mark a tournament where a few key names simply failed to show up.
With that in mind, we at The Tennis Gazette saw fit to detail the five biggest disappointments of the event, whether it be their inability to take the chance in front of them, or just their lack of progress when they really should have gone further.
Iga Świątek’s grass-court troubles continue
Naturally, it is hard to mention Wimbledon underperformance without once again returning to the world number one.
Iga Swiatek was coming off the back of one of the most comfortably Roland Garros titles she will ever win, having brushed aside everyone in her path with unbelievable ease.
Everyone knew about her grass-court reservations, having only made it to the second week in SW19 twice before, but after such dominance at the previous Grand Slam, and having reached the quarter-finals last year, some progress was expected.
However, falling in just the third round to Yulia Putintseva, who was subsequently beaten by Jelena Ostapenko in the fourth, marked a hugely disappointing Wimbledon campaign from the 23-year-old.
Jack Draper fails to build on pre-Wimbledon success
Whilst not quite as much was expected from Jack Draper as there was Swiatek, plenty of Great British hopes did hinge on the performance of the 22-year-old.
And, he had given reason for high expectations after winning his first ATP title in Stuttgart before dumping out Carlos Alcaraz on his way to the Queen’s quarter-final.
However, despite being the British number one, it was a compatriot who dumped him out, as Cam Norrie overcame him in straight sets in just the second round.
He looked lost on Court 1 against his elder, who knocked him around the court with ease.
Seb Korda once again can’t translate his form into Wimbledon
Sebastian Korda is another who was enjoying a fine bout of form ahead of Wimbledon, yet just could not convert that into Grand Slam success.
Admittedly, he could not have had a more awkward first-round draw, facing lucky loser and monstrous server Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, but losing that early was just so disappointing.
That is, even if the Frenchman did reach the Round of 16, earning huge praise along the way.
Before the tournament, Korda had just reached the final in Rosmalen and the semi-finals of Queen’s.
Coco Gauff fails to take Wimbledon opportunity
A fellow American, Coco Gauff’s disappointment stems from what she failed to do after a strong start to the tournament rather than an early exit at Wimbledon.
After all, she had stormed into the Round of 16, dropping just ten games across six sets.
But, with Swiatek having been dumped out, and Aryna Sabalenka’s injury forcing her out of the tournament before it had even begun, the 20-year-old remained the highest-ranked player in the event.
She became the new hot favourite, and responded to that pressure by losing to compatriot Emma Navarro in straight sets.
Marketa Vondrousova falls flat in Wimbledon title defence
Whilst the four aforementioned were certainly disappointing, few compare to a title defence as underwhelming as this.
Marketa Vondrousova burst onto the scene last year when she became the first unseeded female player to win the Wimbledon title.
But, with comments ahead of the tournament leaving John McEnroe annoyed with Vondrousova, it felt like she had already prepared for such a failure.
The Czech star would lose in the first round to Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, becoming just the fourth player to fail so spectacularly in defending their title.
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