Caroline Wozniacki finds herself at a very different juncture in both her life and career compared to when she maintained a consistent reign as world No.1 from age 20 to 21.
But she has never lost her ability to neutralise the game’s biggest hitters.
Still less than a year into her comeback after having two children, Wozniacki – who turns 34 next week – needed only 53 minutes to dismantle in-form American Alycia Parks.
Many believed Parks was poised to do significant damage at the All England Club. She entered the tournament unbeaten in nine grass-court matches, her victory at the WTA 125K event in Gaiba followed by three wins in Wimbledon qualifying.
She even revealed she’d been receiving texts from the great Serena Williams, a seven-time Wimbledon champion herself.
“We’ll talk ahead of the main draw,” Parks told wimbledon.com after her successful qualifying campaign. “She’ll want me to ‘stay focused, one point, one match at a time, then you’ll look back and congratulate yourself when you’re holding up the trophy’.”
Wozniacki had other ideas, winning the last nine games of the match to triumph 6-2 6-0.
Caroline Wozniacki seen competing on Wimbledon’s Court 16 against Alycia Parks in the first round. [Getty Images]
The Dane finished with just four unforced errors to Parks’ 33, an extremely tidy performance that sets up a second-round showdown with 30th seed Leylah Fernandez.
“I knew I was going to play a big server and big hitter today, so I was prepared for that. Just tried to get as many balls in play as possible, and I was very pleased with my return game today specifically,” Wozniacki assessed.
“I think I got a lot of first serve returns in play, and I think that definitely must have been frustrating for her.
“When you play a girl like that, you just never know what to expect. That was just a match that I needed to get through. Keep my head down, keep my focus all the way through, and that was really that.”
Making her return in style 🇩🇰
Caroline Wozniacki progresses to the second round with a 6-2, 6-0 win over Parks, in her first appearance at The Championships since 2019.#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/ehxsQAkn3n
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 2, 2024
Wozniacki’s journey so far in 2024 has been similar to that of fellow mum and Wimbledon wildcard Naomi Osaka, whose progress we reported on yesterday.
Like the Japanese star, she was making her first appearance at the All England Club since 2019, and entered the top 100 just days before Osaka confirmed her return to the same bracket.
Now ranked No.91, Wozniacki showed promise on grass by reaching the quarterfinals of the lead-in event at Bad Homburg, the same stage Osaka reached in ‘s-Hertogenbosch.
And also like Osaka, Wozniacki’s best major results have come on hard courts. The Australian Open 2018 champion is also a two-time finalist at the US Open, in 2009 and 2014.
“Right now I feel like it’s a pretty wide-open draw … it’s all about just keeping your head down, keeping your focus, and I think it’s really anyone’s tournament.”
Caroline Wozniacki, on the women’s tournament at Wimbledon
Six times at Wimbledon she has progressed to the last 16, but it remains the only Slam at which she is yet to appear in the quarterfinals.
“I haven’t played a singles match on grass in five years,” Wozniacki said.
“Last week (in Bad Homburg) I fell a couple of times, but so far this week it’s all good. So I feel comfortable.
“I feel happy to be back on the grass, and I think usually the first couple of days before it’s really trampled down behind the baseline will always be a little more slippery than later on in the tournament.
“I think there’s no better grass courts in the world than Wimbledon, and I think I’m just very fortunate to be able to play here.”
Wozniacki fell in round two of the Australian Open and skipped Roland Garros, making Tuesday’s triumph over Parks just her second Grand Slam match win since her resonant run to the fourth round at last year’s US Open.
And she’ll hope to keep going, despite the fact Fernandez – a finalist last week at the grass-court tournament in Eastbourne – represents an extremely difficult test.
There is a sense of opportunity and possibility in the air at SW19, given the exits of several big names already and the question marks hovering over those remaining.
Defending champion Marketa Vondrousova bowed out of the tournament on Tuesday, a day after No.3 seed Aryna Sabalenka withdrew.
World No.1 Iga Swiatek may be on a 20-match winning streak, but is a less-potent force on grass and has nemesis Jelena Ostapenko looming as a fourth-round foe.
Fourth seed Elena Rybakina, the 2022 champion, has been contending with health issues on and off this season.
“I think it’s pretty wide open,” Wozniacki observed.
“I think obviously big hitters, big servers, lefties, people that are good at being first on the ball obviously have an advantage on the grass court usually. Right now I feel like it’s a pretty wide-open draw.
“You can beat anyone if you play well, but you can also lose to the next opponent if you don’t play your best.
“So it’s all about just keeping your head down, keeping your focus, and I think it’s really anyone’s tournament.”
