Barbora Krejcikova upsets fifth seed Mirra Andreeva in a second round battle of Grand Slam champions at Wimbledon 2026

Barbora Krejcikova gave a reminder of her Grand Slam pedigree with victory over French Open winner Mirra Andreeva on Centre Court.

The 2024 Wimbledon champion hit the comeback trail to upset the fifth seed courtesy of a 4-6 7-5 6-4 success in two hours and 47 minutes.

The 19-year-old Andreeva was frustrated in the early exchanges as Krejcikova continually fought off break points to claw her way into a 3-0 lead.

Andreeva remained calm and slowly began to make her greater power and consistency count to reel off five games in a row before serving out a 45-minute opener to love.

The world number 38, who triumphed in SW19 just two years ago, produced a strong response in the second set and backed up a break to lead 4-1.

Andreeva hit back to level at 5-5 but collapsed serving to try and secure a spot in a tie-break, allowing Krejcikova to force a third set.

The French Open champion looked disgruntled throughout the decider and the angst leaked into her game, allowing two-time Grand Slam winner Krejcikova to make the breakthrough for a 4-2 lead.

The Czech blew six match points looking to serve it out but recovered to break on her seventh and set up a third-round encounter with Nikola Bartunkova.

GAME, SET AND MATCH! - KREJCIKOVA 4-6 7-5 6-4 ANDREEVA

Krejcikova doesn’t dwell on her failure on all SIX match points and lures a slice long to press at 15-30.

The Czech has a big opportunity off a mid-court ball but slams her forehand into the net before fizzing another wide.

The world number 38 makes deuce and the chip return conjures up a SEVENTH match point.

This time the two-time Major winner comes through when a net cord forces Andreeva to slice long.

BREAK! - KREJCIKOVA 4-6 7-5 5-4 ANDREEVA

What drama!

The Czech races into a 40-0 lead but blows all three match points, throwing in a double fault to allow Mirra to make deuce and tee up a spectacular and epic face-off at deuce.

The world number 38 earns her fourth chance with a clinical overhead but Andreeva arrows a forehand to the corner to stay alive.

Barbora engineers a FIFTH opportunity with a crisp forehand of her own but fires an inside-in attempt just long.

The fifth seed then tries to flip the script as she digs out a wonderful pass down the line on the run to earn a break back point, but then thrashes a routine forehand wide.

The tension is palpable as Krejcikova glides away a volley before seeing another just about graze the baseline as she survives two more BPs.

The drama continues as the Czech blows her SIXTH match point with a wayward forehand and she pays the price as Andreeva eventually snares that break back!

Mirra pockets some loose errors from her opponent and mops up a game to love to keeper her fading hopes alive.

Barbora will now serve for the match.

Barbora consolidates with a game to 15 and is one away from pulling off the upset.

Will that be a killer blow?

Andreeva is all at sea with brain-freeze errors outweighing rare moments of class.

Krejcikova has been the more consistent player since the opener and strikes first from deuce to take control of the decider.

Andreeva jabs a poor backhand long on her second break point after Barbora had unleashed a plus-one forehand to begin the recovery from 15-40 down.

The Russian’s mood is really dark at present and a horrible backhand shank doesn’t help matters as the Czech holds from deuce to keep her nose in front.

Andreeva bites back from 0-30 but then toils at deuce with a pair of double faults seeing her come up short on game points.

A shocker of a volley at the net coughs up a break point but a wrong-footing backhand helps her stave it off.

A timely ace follows in a truly topsy-turvy game from the teenager, which she eventually takes when a short slice lures the error.

There’s drama at 30-30 as Andreeva hits a forehand a beads explode from her bracelet.

The Russian loses the point as a secondary blow and then bunts a backhand long after the umpire and the ball kids had scurried around to pick up the remains of the fifth seed’s jewellery.

Meanwhile, Barbora is getting some treatment at her chair for a blister on her foot.

Andreeva’s body language isn’t great at present but she unearths some much-needed resilience at break point down, thundering down a succession of clutch serves to duck out of danger and onto the board.

Krejcikova returns from a lengthy spell off court to clout an ace down the T.

The Czech is forced to rally from there as Andreeva briefly threatens at 15-30 before fading away to allow the two-time Major winner to dig out the hold.

We are going the distance!

Mirra undoes all of her hard work as a risky backhand down the line lands in the alley to cough up triple set point.

The fifth seed survives one but folds on the second and Barbora gets her reward for being the more consistent player in the second stanza.

Kjrecikova stretches into a supreme volley that had all the hallmarks of a multiple Grand Slam doubles champion.

It’s the platform for a much-needed hold to love for the Czech, who guarantees herself the minimum of a tie-break.

Andreeva turns on the after burners from 0-30 to turn the game around and level at five apiece.

Krejcikova gives herself a lot to do with a pair of unforced errors off the backhand and a double fault.

The Czech survives two but is undone by a big forehand down the line on the third and Mirra is back in business!

Andreeva glosses over a double fault to race through a game to 15.

The Russian now has one more chance to try and resuscitate her hopes in this set.

Krejcikova is demonstrating plenty of her grass-court craft here, the sort of quality that saw her land this title 24 months ago.

That said, Mirra has certainly dipped off and it allows the Czech to ease through another hold to 15 and move within a game of forcing a decider.

Andreeva has lost a little bit of the stardust that made her unplayable in the middle part of that opening set, but she does enough here to eventually hold off Barbora from deuce and stay in contention.

Barbora slams down her third ace of the evening en route to consolidating with a hold to 15.

It’s electric court coverage from Mirra as she plays catch-up in a lung-bursting rally and chases down a dropper before blocking away a terrific volley.

It helps the Russian battle back from 0-30 to earn game point but alarm bells ring at deuce when Barbora produces a sizzling crosscourt pass to earn break point.

An emphatic plus-one forehand in the forecourt wipes it out but a drive volley flies long to offer up a second.

The Czech senses her moment and a smart, wrong-footing forehand clips the baseline and secures the first break of the second set.