Steffi Graf defeated six-time defending champion Martina Navratilova in a rematch of the previous year's final, 5–7, 6–2, 6–1 to win the ladies' singles tennis title at the 1988 Wimbledon Championships. It was her first Wimbledon singles title and fourth major title overall. It was also Graf's third step towards completing the first, and so far only Golden Slam in the history of tennis. This marked the second of three years that Graf and Navratilova contested the Wimbledon final.