Paolini Takes Centre Stage in Eastbourne
Jasmine Paolini arrived at Devonshire Park on Tuesday, 17 June 2025, and the crowd knew it. The Italian, who has spent the past 18 months establishing herself as one of the most dangerous players on the WTA Tour, was the headline act on Day Two of the Rothesay International — and British fans and broadcasters treated her accordingly. American veteran Madison Keys and French prospect Clara Fery also featured in the day's schedule, filling out a programme that gave Eastbourne exactly the kind of billing it craves.
The BBC carried live coverage throughout, a reflection of how sharply public interest in Paolini has risen. Wimbledon begins on 30 June 2025, and Eastbourne has long been where players come to find their grass-court legs before the sport's biggest fortnight. That Paolini is here, taking it seriously, tells you something about where her head is at twelve months after she came agonisingly close to winning on the same surface.
Background: Paolini's Remarkable Rise
For most of her career, Jasmine Paolini was a reliable mid-ranking professional — solid, consistent, but rarely the name that drew gasps in the draw. Born on 4 January 1996 in Castelnuovo di Garfagnana, Italy, she spent years on the tour without threatening the top of major tournaments. Then 2024 happened.
At Roland Garros, she reached her first Grand Slam final, beating a string of high-ranked opponents before losing to Iga Świątek. Weeks later, on an entirely different surface, she did it again — reaching the Wimbledon final, where Barbora Krejčíková edged her in a tight match. No Italian woman had ever reached two Grand Slam finals in the same calendar year. By the start of 2025, her ranking had carried her into the world's top three. She also picked up a doubles gold medal at the Paris Olympics alongside Sara Errani, capping a year that would have seemed implausible just two seasons earlier.
What Is Happening Now at Eastbourne
The Rothesay International Eastbourne 2025 is one of the WTA Tour's top grass-court events, and this year's field is among the strongest it has seen. Day Two on 17 June put Paolini front and centre, with tournament organisers and broadcasters treating her match as the day's main event.
BBC Sport tracked the action live for UK audiences, with Paolini, Keys, and Fery all in action across the programme. Lawn Tennis Association officials have pointed to strong attendance and viewing figures, part of a broader uptick in British interest in grass-court tennis driven by a succession of compelling Wimbledon fortnight in recent years. The 2025 draw features multiple Grand Slam champions and finalists. Paolini's team has made clear that her grass-court preparation this season has been deliberate — Eastbourne is a competitive target, not a warm-up jog.
Key Players: Who to Watch at Eastbourne
Paolini is the player British media cannot take their eyes off. She brings relentless energy, sharp tactical instincts, and the ability to perform on any surface. At Wimbledon 2024, she showed that her low, skidding ball-striking and quick footwork work on grass. She will be looking to build on that in 2025.
Madison Keys adds serious weight to the draw. The American claimed her first Grand Slam title at the 2017 US Open and has stayed a consistent top-30 presence ever since. Her big serve and aggressive baseline game suit grass well, and her experience gives her a genuine shot at going deep this week.
Clara Fery, the young Frenchwoman also on court on Day Two, is part of the next wave of European talent pushing for recognition at the highest level. She is less established than Paolini or Keys, but her presence at a WTA 500 event signals growing ambitions. The wider field reinforces the point — this is one of the most competitive editions of the Eastbourne tournament in recent memory.
Regional and Global Implications: Grass-Court Tennis in Focus
Eastbourne sits at a specific and important point in the tennis calendar: the last major stop before Wimbledon, where form and results carry genuine predictive weight. For the local area, the tournament at Devonshire Park brings world-class sport to an intimate, traditional English setting and generates real economic benefit for the town.
Across the WTA Tour, the grass-court swing — Birmingham, Eastbourne, Bad Homburg and beyond — has grown in stature. Paolini is part of the reason why. Her run to the Wimbledon final in 2024 demonstrated that technically gifted, athletic players can thrive on grass, not just the big servers who once seemed to own the surface. That matters for how younger players think about their grass-court preparation.
In Italy, the effect has been electric. Paolini's achievements, combined with Jannik Sinner's rise to world number one on the men's side, have given Italian tennis a credible claim to being one of the sport's current powerhouses. Enthusiasm at grassroots level has followed.
What Comes Next: The Road to Wimbledon
The Rothesay International concludes on Saturday, 21 June, with the women's singles final scheduled for that day. For Paolini, the goals are straightforward: grass-court match time, sharper serve-and-return patterns, and arriving at Wimbledon physically and mentally ready.
Wimbledon 2025 runs from Monday, 30 June to Sunday, 13 July at the All England Club. Paolini's 2024 finalist finish gives her ranking protection and a high seeding — likely top four, depending on final pre-tournament standings. A deep run at Eastbourne, semi-finals or better, would send her to SW19 with momentum behind her.
After Wimbledon, the hard-court North American swing takes over, building through July and August to the US Open. Paolini's ability across surfaces means she will be in contention at every major remaining this year. For now, though, the grass courts of East Sussex have her full attention — and she is making no secret of what she is here to do.
