When it comes to scouting reports, few could argue that Aryna Sabalenka’s dossier on her first-round opponent at Wimbledon was a comprehensive one.
‘I know that she’s super pretty,’ Sabalenka said with a laugh when asked about Monday’s opponent, 24-year-old Carson Branstine.
‘The other day I opened social media, and she was giving an interview. I think she just qualified. I was like, “Oh, my God, this girl is so beautiful.”
‘Then I opened the draw, and I see I’m playing the Canadian girl. I open her profile, and I’m like, “Oh, this is the beautiful girl.” That’s all I know so far.’
The world No1 is the number-one seed in SW19 and has a serious case for claiming the Venus Rosewater Dish after appearing in the Australian Open and Roland-Garros finals this season.
Her last handful of attempts at the title have been abortive: banned in 2022 for her Belarusian citizenship, knocked out by Ons Jabeur in her 2023 semi-final, and withdrawn, crocked last year.
But Sabalenka has a power game that is well-suited to grass and is poised for a run on Centre Court – that is, if she can navigate her first round against Branstine, an opponent with an unusual backstory.
Ranked world No 194, Branstine has in part funded her WTA career with modelling work for brands including Zara and Lululemon. She also delivered for Uber Eats earlier this year in Los Angeles to cover her expenses with her final delivery being the day before she flew to Cancun, where she went on to reach her first WTA 125K final.
‘Modelling and tennis are weirdly similar: you are an object a lot, and people sometimes forget you’re a person too,’ Branstine told Clay magazine last week.
‘(But) I love being in front of the camera during a shoot. It’s fun, I love fashion. It’s been one of the reasons I’ve been able to pay some of my trips.
‘I didn’t want to ask my parents for anything – I wanted everything to come from me and from my tennis,’ she added.
A former collegiate athlete with represented American universities USC, UVA, and Texas A&M, Branstine secured a degree in Society, Ethics & Law with a minor in Philosophy and Sports Management before turning to tennis full time at the start of this season.
A junior doubles champion in her youth, Branstine’s path was stymied after an extended spell on the sidelines during her college career.
The Wilhelmina Models mannequin underwent surgeries on both her knee and her hip, with Branstine acknowledging that injury woes had taken years off her time on court.
’Ive spent in total over five years injured,’ Branstine continued. ‘The last time I played a full season was when I was 15.
‘I did my own research, stopped listening to people, and figured out what works for my body.’
But after a return to the circuit in earnest in 2024, securing her first ITF Tour title that year and making her first WTA main draw debuts at the start of 2025, Branstine is bullish about her prospects on grass – and against Sabalenka.
‘I’ve found the secret formula, because I’d say I’m one of the best athletes on tour,’ Branstine said. ‘I believe in that – I’m fast, I lift a lot of weight, and I’m pretty agile for someone my height.’
Her first order of business in Wimbledon qualifiers was an eye-catching one, with Branstine despatching French Open semi-finalist Lois Boisson in the first round.
Boisson’s rise through public consciousness from victim of Harriet Dart’s unkind commentary about her ‘smelling’ at Rouen, to her miraculous wildcard run at her home Grand Slam had many clamouring for her to be given one in SW19.
But the All England Club appeared to sneer in the face of the entente cordiale with Boisson forced to prove it in Roehampton. But there would be no immediate part two to the fairytale, with Boisson knocked out in three sets.
Next up was her old doubles partner Bianca Andreescu, her teenage partner with whom Branstine won the junior French and Australian Opens. Six years on from the US Open, injury has set back Branstine’s compatriot, and she too was dealt with in three sets by the 24-year-old.
Branstine had previously scored a major upset in the main draw of the Libema Open on grass at the start of June, despatching the number-one seed Liudmila Samsonova in the first round in the Netherlands. Should Sabalenka, similarly placed, beware?
Beyond that tournament, and last week’s qualifying, there is little for Sabalenka to go on when working out how to book her second-round spot.
‘I leave that stuff for my team, and for sure we’re going to watch her matches,’ Sabalenka noted on Saturday. ‘We’re going to talk about the tactic and everything. That’s all I know.
‘It’s not easy to face someone you never seen before and, yeah, you never had a chance to see her game. But I’m glad now with the technologies and everything, you can watch as many matches of her as you want. I know that I’ll be prepared for her game.’
But going under the radar suits Branstine to a tee.
‘Maybe not everyone knows who I am, but I believe I can beat anyone,’ Branstine said on the eve of her showdown
‘I know my game can stand up to anyone’s, and I’m glad I can show that now.’
