Linda Nosková turned 2026 into a breakthrough on grass, winning Berlin in June and Wimbledon in July at the age of 21. Her first-strike game made her the player of the women’s grass season, and she finished 1st in the GTC Grass Rankings with a GTC Grass Rating of 128, up from 114 and 7th before the swing.
Grass at a glance
- GTC Grass Rating: 128, 1st in the women’s rankings (7th before the season)
- Pillars: Lawn Form 96, Arsenal 76, Wimbledon 80, Nerve 78
- Nationality: Czech Republic
- Best Wimbledon result: Champion (2026)
- Grass titles: Berlin 2026, Wimbledon 2026
- Plays: Right-handed, two-handed backhand
How Linda plays on grass
Nosková hits a heavy, flat ball off both wings and looks to take control of the rally within the first two shots. On grass that approach pays: her serve brings short replies, her forehand punishes them, and the low bounce gives opponents less time to reset. The two-handed backhand is just as dangerous, particularly hit early and down the line, and she returns aggressively enough to put pressure on second serves throughout a match.
Her Arsenal score of 76 reflects that power and directness. The parts of her game still developing are movement on low balls and use of the slice, which she uses less than the most varied grass players. When she is under pressure in long rallies she can rush, and in Bad Homburg a heavy defeat showed how quickly her game can lose its range.
The Nerve score of 78 was earned in the Wimbledon final. She lost five match points in the second set against Karolína Muchová, lost the set, and still regrouped to win the decider. Against Madison Keys in the fourth round she also won a second-set tie-break 7-2 to close out the match in straight sets.
Grass record
Before 2026 Nosková’s grass results were steady rather than striking. At Wimbledon she lost in the first round in 2023 and the second round in 2024, then reached the fourth round in 2025, losing to Amanda Anisimova. Her best warm-up result was a semi-final at Bad Homburg in 2025, where she lost to Jessica Pegula. She had no grass title, and Berlin in 2026 was her first grass-court final at WTA level.
The 2026 grass season
Her rating stood at 114 going into Berlin. There she beat Renata Zarazua, Diane Parry, Paula Badosa and Alexandra Eala, losing only one set all week, the second in the final against 3rd seed Jessica Pegula, which she won 6-4, 4-6, 6-3. It was the biggest title of her career, her first on grass and enough for a Top 10 debut. She also won the doubles. The rating rose to 120. A week later in Bad Homburg she lost in the first round to qualifier Elena-Gabriela Ruse 6-1, 6-3, and the rating eased to 119.
At Wimbledon, seeded 9th, she beat Madison Keys 6-4, 7-6(2) in the fourth round to reach her first Wimbledon quarter-final, then beat Elise Mertens and 12th seed Marta Kostyuk. In the all-Czech final against 10th seed Muchová she won 6-2, 5-7, 6-3, closing the match on her sixth match point. The title took her rating from 119 to 128.
Looking ahead to 2027
Nosková returns in 2027 as defending Wimbledon champion and Berlin champion, which brings a heavier schedule of expectation and ranking points to protect. The Bad Homburg defeat is a reminder that her level can drop when she is tired, so the order and number of warm-up events will matter. The technical aim is more variety, particularly the slice and better defence on low balls, so she has a second plan when her timing is off. A realistic target is another deep Wimbledon run, a quarter-final at minimum, with a genuine chance to defend the title if her serve holds up.
