On Monday 29th June, Francesca Jones opened her 2026 Wimbledon campaign against France’s Diane Parry, who is ranked number 49 in the world.

The match, which took place on court 17, saw her lose to France’s number one WTA women’s singles player 4-6, 4-6.

Ahead of her opening match at Wimbledon, Bradford-born Francesca Jones said: “I won’t comment on other matches as it’s key to focus on one at a time. Dianne has had a great season, and her slice and serve fit the profile of a dangerous grass court player. There were easier draws but of course harder ones too.”

Jones’ 2026 season has been ‘mismatched’ so far, with the tennis star having won 10/15 matches throughout the year to date (ahead of Wimbledon).

This year has seen her reach the quarterfinals of both the ASB Classic in Auckland and the Istanbul Open, as well as the semifinals of the WTT W100 in Germany.

On her season so far, 25-year-old Jones said: “I’ve made it no secret regarding the challenges I’ve faced this year, though disclosing what I can due to legal cases. My level is there, which I’ve proven more than enough; I just need to build my consistency back, which I know will come at some point with my persistence. I have my first grand slam win in the books, which is definitely a big help.”

However, her biggest success of the year so far came at Roland Garros when she won her first ever Grand Slam match against Brazil’s Beatriz Haddad Maia.

She won the match 1-6, 7-6, 6-2, meaning she claimed her first win against the Brazilian, who is ranked 134th in the women’s singles, after two previous losses in 2021.

On her first Grand Slam match victory, Jones said: “Of course it’s a monkey off my back and one I hoped would happen this year, but I wouldn’t say it changes expectations. Every event is a fresh page and writes its own chapter.”

Following on from her match-winning campaign at Roland Garros, Jones made her fourth appearance at Wimbledon in six years.

Ahead of this year’s championship, she had recorded a best result of the round of 128 across her three previous appearances, as she fell to defeats against Coco Gauff (2021), Petra Martic (2024) and Yuliia Starodubtseva (2025).

Ahead of this year’s campaign and with what expectations were here, Jones said: “No expectations this year, as it’s been a challenging season. I’ll give what I have on the day and hope it’s enough. I will break through here eventually; whether that is this year or next year, only time will tell, but I need a clean run without injuries like last year, where I came close.”

Jones will be one of numerous British women competing at the 139th edition of the Wimbledon Championships, with 6 of the 8 women’s singles wild cards being handed to British women.

These women will be looking to become the 13th British woman, and the first since Virginia Wade in 1977, to win the Wimbledon singles title.

On what can be expected from the British women at Wimbledon, Jones said: “I think it has been an inconsistent year for the British women so far as we’ve all faced difficulties. It’s never easy to manage your home slam, but a few of the girls have experience and no doubt will push through.”

The Wimbledon Championships will continue at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club with the women’s singles final taking place on Saturday 11th July.