Coco Gauff advanced to the third round of Wimbledon 2026 by defeating Solana Sierra 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(10-7) on July 1 in a thrilling match at the All England Club [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. Gauff was seeded seventh and saved multiple match points in the final set tiebreak, showcasing resilience and mental toughness to secure the win [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. "Solana played a great match and, yeah, I think it was just tug of war with us," Gauff said. "She was hitting some big shots so I felt like a lot of times I was on the defence. I was trying to be aggressive when I could but overall just happy with my serve. I thought it held up the whole match and obviously it helped me in the tiebreaker." She recorded a 124 mph serve during the match and a 117 mph ace in the tiebreak [1, 3].

Solana Sierra, ranked 56th in the world, had been the first lucky loser to reach the women's last 16 at Wimbledon last year, adding to the significance of Gauff’s victory over a strong opponent [1, 3, 5]. Gauff, who has won two Grand Slam titles in her career, took a moment to reflect afterward, saying, "I’m happy and proud of myself. Every time I walk down this hallway [by Centre Court], I get deja vu. I remind myself, if I could do that [seven] years ago, I’m definitely a better player now, so I definitely can do it now." [5]

Gauff will meet fellow American Claire Liu in the third round [2, 4].

Meanwhile, men’s defending champion Jannik Sinner reached the third round by beating Portugal’s Nuno Borges 7-6(4), 7-6(2), 6-4 on the same day [2, 4]. Women’s top seed Aryna Sabalenka also advanced with a 6-1, 7-6(9) win over American McCartney Kessler, though she struggled to close out the second set. Sabalenka said, "She played incredible and played super aggressive and it was really tough to handle the second set and I am glad to have powered through." [2]

Sabalenka credited her focus and motivation during tough moments partly to inspiration from Rafael Nadal. "I watched the Nadal documentary. He said: ‘The only thing you can control is your focus and motivation.’ It really sticks deep inside of me," she said [5].

Other seeded players including Naomi Osaka and Karolina Muchova also advanced to the third round on July 1 [2, 4].