LONDON : Defending men’s champion Jannik Sinner and women’s top seed Aryna Sabalenka answered questions over their form with opening-round victories at Wimbledon on Monday, while home hopes suffered a dismal start as Britain’s players failed to register a single win.
Sinner, playing his first match since his shock second-round exit at the French Open, was pushed to five sets by Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic before prevailing 4-6 6-3 6-7(6) 6-2 6-3.
Sabalenka, who said she left Roland Garros in a “deep, dark place” after her quarter-final defeat to Diana Shnaider, enjoyed a far more straightforward start, beating Serbian qualifier Teodora Kostovic 6-2 6-3 on Centre Court.
In the evening’s headline match, Novak Djokovic began his pursuit of a record-equalling eighth Wimbledon title and a record 25th Grand Slam singles crown with a 6-4 5-7 6-4 6-4 victory over China’s Wu Yibing.
World number one Sinner, now the clear title favourite following Carlos Alcaraz’s absence, survived a stern examination, while several seeded players exited on the opening day.
Eleventh seed Casper Ruud lost 6-4 6-2 7-6(7) to Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz, while 12th seed Andrey Rublev was beaten by fellow Russian Roman Safiullin in five sets, losing a deciding tiebreak 14-12 after failing to convert two match points.
French Open runner-up Maja Chwalinska also suffered an early exit, falling 2-6 7-5 6-2 to Thai qualifier Mananchaya Sawangkaew after injuring herself while holding match point.
Several leading women’s contenders advanced comfortably.
Japan’s Naomi Osaka made a stylish entrance wearing a white kimono inspired by the film “Kill Bill” before defeating Elsa Jacquemot 6-1 7-5.
American fourth seed Jessica Pegula beat Darja Vidmanova 7-5 6-3, seventh seed Coco Gauff eased past Tamara Korpatsch 6-2 6-1, while fifth seed Mirra Andreeva defeated Magda Linette 7-5 6-4.
Swiss 11th seed Belinda Bencic also advanced, ending the hopes of British wildcard Mika Stojsavljevic.
Britain endured a miserable opening day. After Emma Raducanu withdrew before the tournament with an injury, men’s number one Jack Draper also pulled out on Monday because of an arm problem.
Ten British players lost, including 26th seed Cameron Norrie, who was beaten in five sets by American qualifier Michael Zheng.
Sinner’s physical resilience had been questioned after his collapse in the Paris heat against Juan Manuel Cerundolo, but the Italian recovered from losing the opening set and a third-set tiebreak to grind out victory.
The win was his 94th at Grand Slam level, equalling the Italian record held by Nicola Pietrangeli, although it came at a cost after he injured a toenail in a fall that left his white shoe stained with blood.
“It was a little tight in the beginning, I didn’t play at my best but I tried to get into it,” Sinner said. “I’m happy I turned it around because the third set was very tough to swallow.”
After missing the chance to move two sets to one ahead, Sinner responded strongly to avoid becoming only the third defending Wimbledon men’s champion to lose in the opening round.
“I’m actually surprised that they let me keep playing because my all-white outfit turned into a little red,” he added.
Djokovic also faced a stern test in his first grasscourt match of the season but broke decisively in the fourth set after Wu miscued an overhead.
“Playing on this surface, these kinds of matches are decided on a few points and few shots,” Djokovic said.
“Thankfully, I have the experience of the last 20-plus years of playing on this court that can help me a bit and manage the situation. It would be nice to combine the experience with a young fresh body.”
Former U.S. Open champion Daniil Medvedev needed little more than 90 minutes to beat Croatia’s Marin Cilic 6-1 6-2 6-4.
Among the younger generation, Brazil’s Joao Fonseca defeated Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut 7-6(4) 6-4 6-3 before heading off to watch Brazil’s World Cup last-16 match, while 19-year-old Spaniard Rafael Jodar enjoyed a winning Wimbledon debut by beating British wildcard Felix Gill 6-3 6-3 7-5.
