Alicia Dudeney will make her Grand Slam main-draw debut at Wimbledon on Monday after receiving a wild card into her home major. The 23-year-old earned the place at No. 245, turning a fast climb into a first chance to play the main draw at Wimbledon.
Nottingham Call For Dudeney
She said she was in Nottingham when the news came through. “I was actually in Nottingham when I found out,” Dudeney said, adding, “I was just incredibly excited. It's been my dream to play here, and I was just overwhelmed and really happy.”
That reaction fits the route that got her here. She picked up a racquet when she was 7 or 8 years old, trained at Pavilion & Avenue Tennis Club in Brighton and Hove with Sonay Kartal, and went to the University of Florida at 18.
Florida To Wimbledon
Her college path ran all the way through May 2025, when she graduated from the University of Florida and turned professional. She left with an 89-36 singles record, first-team All-SEC honors in 2025 and a run to the NCAA doubles semifinals in 2024.
Dudeney also said she was not fully sure she was ready to turn professional. “I would say I wasn't entirely sure what I was getting myself into,” she said of the college route, a choice she made after knowing people who had gone that way and liked it.
Since turning pro, the results have come quickly. She won seven World Tennis Tour titles, including four in Monastir, Tunisia, and won 25 of 27 matches between March and May this year. By the time the wild card arrived, she had moved from unranked 13 months earlier to No. 245.
Centre Court Return
Her Wimbledon experience is not starting from zero. She reached the Wimbledon girls' singles quarterfinals in 2021 and watched Novak Djokovic beat Jannik Sinner in five sets on Centre Court in the 2022 Wimbledon quarterfinals as a spectator.
Two weeks before Wimbledon, she made her WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz main-draw debut in Nottingham, and now the step up is immediate. On Monday, she opens against Alycia Parks, with the task now reduced to one match and one adjustment: carry the same rise onto the main stage at Wimbledon.
