After a hard-fought victory in the 1st round against Petra Martiฤ, Diane Parry managed to overcome Diana Shnaider to advance to the 3rd round of Wimbledon. And what a way to do it!
Entering unknown territory, Diane Parry and Diana Shnaider had never faced each other before. This was their first singles confrontation, a month after meeting
each other in doubles at Roland-Garros (C. Garcia, D. Parry โ M. Andreeva, D. Shnaider; 0-6, 5-7).
For her Wimbledon debut, Diane Parry defeated Petra Martiฤ (4-6, 6-3, 6-2). The match had two phases: dominance by the Croatian, followed by a comeback from the French player. After her victory, she told Figaro: “I have a game that adapts quite well to grass.” However, Diana Shnaider is a different caliber altogether. Over the past three years, the player from Nice has lost all 15 encounters against Top 20 players.
Diana Shnaider is logically the favorite. Currently ranked 18th in the world and seeded 12, the 21-year-old Russian comfortably defeated Moyuka Uchijima (7-6, 6-3) in the 1st round. In 2025, her grass record remains mixed (4 wins, 3 losses). After two early exits at the Berlin (vs Marketa Vondrousova; 3-6, 7-6, 3-6) and Bad Homburg tournaments (vs Donna Vekic; 6-3, 6-3), Diana Shnaider needs a series of victories to get back on track.
A dramatic first set
Both players quickly sized up their evening opponent. Diane Parry, serving first, tries to set her pace. On Wimbledon’s tricky surface, her sliced backhands work wonders. After both players held their serves, the first turning point of the set occurred in the fifth game. Diana Shnaider broke the serve of the player from Nice, who made a significant error at the net at 30-40.
Nevertheless, the latter did not give up and drew level at 4-4: she earned three break points, converting the second. In a positive momentum, the world’s 118th-ranked player easily held her serve against a visibly frustrated Diana Shnaider. This is evident in the numbers: only 33% of first serves were successful, allowing Diane Parry to capitalize on the second serves. Result: three unforced errors followed by a double fault in the next game. 6-4, the set is handed on a platter to Diane Parry.
Parry victorious
A complicated first service game and a return to reality… or not. Diana Shnaider immediately earned three break points, but they were all saved by the player from Nice, who moved forward more confidently. In a more defensive style, Diane Parry stayed at the baseline and forced the Russian to open up, leading to one too many unforced errors. The break is achieved, 2-0.
Diane Parry took control while Diana Shnaider lacked solutions. A controlled service game and a second consecutive break followed. 4-0, the French player is unstoppable and seems untouchable. 88% of points won behind the first serve in the second set.
The 12th seed came back to 5-1 in a final effort. Too little to distract Diane Parry, who was on a mission. One last racket change before serving for the match. And, as if the story was written this way, she concluded her stellar performance with a love game.
The world’s 118th-ranked player claims victory after 1 hour and 11 minutes of play and will face Sonay Kartal (51st in the WTA rankings) in the 3rd round.
