LONDON, July 2. /TASS/. Russian tennis player Maria Sharapova has been defeated by French Pauline Parmentier in their first round match of the prestigious Wimbledon Championships. The third Grand Slam tournament of the tennis season is held on the grass courts of the All England Club in Wimbledon, London.

The 32-year old Russian has retired down 4:6, 7:6 (7:4), 5:0 with an injury after two hours and 16 minutes of play. The 33-year old French is set to face No. 30 seed Spanish Carla Suarez Navarro.

Parmentier’s best Grand Slam performance is fourth round of the French Open in 2014. She is currently ranked 88th in the WTA rankings.

Sharapova, who is ranked 80th, has won 39 WTA titles. She holds a rare achievement of a career Grand Slam, having won Roland Garros twice, and the US Open, Australian Open and Wimbledon once each.

Also, Russian Varvara Flink defeated Spanish Paula Badosa 6:4, 6:2. She will contest her second round match either against Elena-Gabriela Ruse (Romania) or No. 18 seed Julia Goerges (Germany).

The 133th edition of the Wimbledon Championships is played over a fortnight and will be concluded on July 14. The tournament’s prize fund is $49.43 million. German Angelique Kerber is the defending champion.