American qualifier Claire Liu defeated 51st-ranked Zeynep Sonmez of Turkey 7-5, 6-3 in London on Wednesday to reach the third round of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in her professional career.
The world No. 146 had failed to advance past the second round in 29 previous major appearances since 2015.
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She has now won five consecutive matches on the lawns of the All England Club after navigating through three rounds of qualifying.
The victory sets up a third-round match on Friday against world No. 7 and fellow American Coco Gauff on No. 1 Court, where Liu previously won the 2017 Wimbledon girls' singles championship.
Liu had prepared for an early exit from London, having already checked out of her hotel room on Wednesday morning before her second-round match was played.
"Just because you're packing doesn't mean you're leaving," recalled Liu, laughing as she remembered what her boyfriend told her while organizing her luggage.
The 26-year-old Southern California native has struggled with a wrist injury, perfectionism, and a coaching split since achieving a career-high ranking of No. 52 in early 2023.
She has used therapy and launched a Substack newsletter titled "Finding Claire-ity."
"I was just super relieved to get through that," said Liu, noting she had blown a set and a break lead in the French Open's second round last month.
Liu later addressed her junior success at the tournament nine years ago, where she became the first American to win the Wimbledon girls' singles title since Chanda Rubin in 1992.
