Thea Frodin Makes US Open Main-Draw Debut Against World No. 2 Elena Rybakina

Seventeen-year-old Thea Frodin entered the women’s singles draw at the U.S. Open as a wildcard and will face No. 2 seed Elena Rybakina in the first round. Rybakina, the reigning world No. 2 and 2026 Australian Open champion, entered the match as a heavy favorite. She recently withdrew from the mixed-doubles event after an ankle injury that forced her to retire from her Cincinnati quarterfinal, but she reported that walking remained painful while she resumed practice.

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Frodin first appeared on a Hollywood set in 2021, serving as the junior stunt and body double for Serena Williams in the biographical film *King Richard*. She was 12 at the time and spent roughly six months recreating Williams’s early tennis years. The experience, she said, was “really special.” Her on-court breakthrough came later, when she captured the USTA Billie Jean King Girls’ 18s National Championships in San Diego, defeating Julieta Pareja in a double-tiebreak semifinal and overwhelming Janae Preston 6-1, 6-0 in the final. The title awarded her a main-draw wildcard at the U.S. Open.

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The WTA lists Frodin with an 18-10 singles record for the current season, and she has risen more than 400 places in the world rankings since the end of 2025, now sitting at No. 580. Earlier junior highlights include a semifinals appearance at the 2026 Australian Open girls’ singles and a runner-up finish in the 2025 Wimbledon girls’ doubles alongside Pareja. She also reached her first professional final at an ITF W35 event in Arcadia, California, in February and made a WTA qualifying debut in Miami, pushing former world No. 35 Viktorija Golubic to three sets.

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Frodin’s debut pits a teenage wildcard against a two-time major winner on the same courts where Serena Williams returns to compete in women’s doubles with her sister Venus. The matchup underscores a symbolic passing of the torch: the young player who once helped portray Serena’s rise now begins her own Grand Slam journey. While the odds heavily favor Rybakina, Frodin’s athleticism and recent rapid ascent suggest the match could provide a noteworthy early test for the newcomer.

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