The Queen of London versus the Ice Queen

Tatjana Maria came to Queen's Club with the number 1 on her back, that of the defending champion who had produced one of the most storybook exploits of the 2025 season, beating four top-20 players from the qualifying rounds to capture the biggest title of her career at 38. On grass she remains the same tricky player to handle, with a 75% win rate on the surface this season and three consecutive wins at the moment, including a clean domination of Sakkari this morning. Grass literally transforms her, whereas she struggles on hard courts this season.

Rybakina is still the logical favorite, but not unbeatable on this surface in this specific context. Their only prior meeting on grass tilts in Maria’s favor, as she beat her at Queen's Club last year on her way to the title. The defending champion is protecting what’s hers on her favorite court with three straight wins in her legs and a patient baseline game that knows how to exploit second serves and come to the net at the right time.