Zeynep Sonmez of Türkiye advanced to the second round of Wimbledon 2026 on Monday, defeating American Ann Li in a three-set comeback victory at the All England Club in London. Ranked No. 51 in the world, Sonmez overcame world No. 29 Li 7-5, 1-6, 6-4 after recovering from an early deficit in the opening set.
Li started strongly, taking a 4-1 lead before Sonmez fought back with two service breaks to move ahead 5-4. Although she missed two set points and surrendered her advantage, the Turkish player regained momentum to claim the opening set 7-5.
The second set belonged to Li, who quickly built a 3-0 lead and cruised to a 6-1 win to force a deciding set.
The final set remained on serve until 4-4, when Sonmez broke Li's serve before holding her own to seal a 6-4 victory and book her place in the second round.
Sonmez will next face either American Claire Liu or Belgium's Hanne Vandewinkel.
The win marked Sonmez's third victory in as many career meetings against Li, following her previous triumph over the American at the Merida Open.
Last year, Sonmez became the first Turkish player to reach the third round at Wimbledon and the first from Türkiye to advance that far at any Grand Slam tournament since 1950.