Bulgarian Breakthrough: Tomova Knocks Out Two-Time Wimbledon Finalist

Viktoriya Tomova achieved a major career win at the start of Wimbledon by eliminating two-time finalist and former world No. 2 Ons Jabeur. The Bulgarian was ahead 7-6(5), 2-0 when the Tunisian retired from the match due to health issues.

Tomova started confidently, breaking early to take a 3-1 lead. Although she failed to capitalize on seven game points and allowed Jabeur to break back, the momentum was clearly in Tomova’s favor. Midway through the set, it became evident that Jabeur was not feeling well. She called for medical assistance, and a doctor came onto the court to check her blood pressure. Visibly distressed, Jabeur left the court in tears for a medical timeout.

Despite the difficulties, Jabeur returned and managed to push the set into a tiebreak. There, Tomova initially trailed 3-5 but responded with a strong run of four straight points to claim the set.

At the beginning of the second set, Tomova broke Jabeur’s serve immediately. Soon after, the Tunisian, clearly unable to continue physically, decided to retire from the match, handing victory to the Bulgarian.

For her efforts, Tomova secured £99,000 from the tournament’s prize pool and earned 70 ranking points. Ranked 111th in the world at the time of the match, she also surpassed the $3 million mark in career earnings.

In the next round, Tomova will face either Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko, a former Roland Garros champion, or British hopeful Sonay Kartal.