US Open champion Sloane Stephens crashed out in the first round of Wimbledon after a straight-sets defeat to Donna Vekic here yesterday. Stephens, who was also the runner-up at the French Open last month, was downed 1-6, 3-6 by the unseeded Croatian.

It was a tough draw for the fourth seed as Vekic is a threat on the grass but Stephens put in an erratic display. The American had not played since that loss to Simona Halep in Paris and her ring-rust showed as Vekic dominated from the off. She raced to the first set in just 26 minutes with two breaks of serve but found herself on the back foot when Stephens broke to lead 2-0 early in the second.