World number three Jessica Pegula struggled to explain her shock Wimbledon exit as she praised the “insane” performance of opponent Elisabetta Cocciaretto.
Last year’s US Open runner-up crashed out following a 6-2 6-3 defeat to the Italian world number 116 in just 58 minutes.
Seeded third, Pegula became the highest-profile casualty of the women’s draw so far as Cocciaretto celebrated the greatest win of her career.
Asked what went wrong, the 31-year-old American, who lost in the first round of a grand slam for the first time since the 2020 French Open, replied: “I don’t know. She played absolutely incredible tennis.
“Do I think I played the best match ever? No. But I definitely don’t think I was playing bad.
“It’s really a bummer to lose. I haven’t lost first round of a slam in a very long time, so that sucks.
“I’m upset that I wasn’t able to turn anything around. But at the same time, I do feel like she played kind of insane. Hats off to her. Kudos to her for playing at a high level that I couldn’t match it today.”
Cocciaretto, who had only once before defeated a top-10 player, spectacularly turned the tables on Pegula, having suffered a 6-4 6-0 round-three loss to her in SW19 in 2023.
Queen’s champion Tatjana Maria, who reached the semi-finals in 2022, also made an early exit as she lost in three sets to American Katie Volynets.
