After battling back from the brink of quitting tennis, Katie Swan became Britain’s unlikely first winner of this year’s Wimbledon after beating Romania’s Irina-Camelia Begu to reach the second round to claim the victory of her life.
After converting her fifth match point, the 27-year-old Swan fell to her knees and held her head in her hands while Court 16 erupted into cheers. After Katie Boulter added to the 10 British defeats on Monday, Swan, the world No 196, is the first player through to the second round.
“I honestly think it’s probably number one [in my career],” Swan said. “It was pure relief being able to finish that match, especially being 40-0 up and then being pegged back and saving break point and being able to get over the line. It means so much.”
A former Australian Open junior finalist, when she was just 15, Swan became the youngest player to represent Great Britain at the Billie Jean King Cup and was tipped for big things as a teenager as she made her Wimbledon debut in 2016.
But injuries stalled Swan’s progress, with a back injury putting her career in jeopardy. “If I’m honest, no,” she said when asked if she imagined being back at Wimbledon again. “It was a really hard time to imagine getting out of. I took about eight months out and it took me a really long time to get back to a place where I felt like physically I could compete at all at a professional level again.”
By the end of 2024, Swan had started coaching at a tennis club in Kansas, where her parents live, and considered retirement because the pain was so severe. As a “last resort” and following a recommendation from her coach, she visited a doctor in Arizona and sought alternative treatment. “He found that my nerves weren’t functioning properly,” she said.
“it wasn’t very enjoyable, but I spent a couple of weeks with him, and it really, really helped. That’s been kind of the turning point for me, was that treatment. There were definitely tears from how painful it was at times. But it really helped when I went back on court after seeing him.”
In April 2025, Swan returned to tennis with no ranking and began to build her way back on the World Tennis Tour, the rung below the WTA. That June, she won her first title in two-and-a-half years in San Diego, returning to the world’s top 1000. A further five titles on the World Tennis Tour followed, with Swan returning to the world’s top 200.
A Wimbledon wildcard recognised Swan’s resilience, and offered the 27-year-old a first appearance at the Championships in three years. “It’s hard to explain how much it means to me to receive a main draw wild for this year’s Wimbledon,” she wrote on Instagram. I love this sport so much and although it hasn’t been an easy road for me, I’m glad that little girl didn’t give up. Another chance to play on the most prestigious stage in tennis. I can’t wait to give it my all.”
Swan, the British No 6, is the first home player into the second round after a devastatingly difficult first two days, with Emma Raducanu and Jack Draper pulling out injured and the most defeats on an opening Monday since 2005. She will now play an American in the second round, in either former Australian Open champion and 26th seed Madison Keys.
“I’m in round two of Wimbledon now,” Swan said. “My next goal will be winning my round two match and hopefully getting into Round three for the first time. Playing at Wimbledon is amazing in itself. Oviously playing on Centre would be a dream.”
