Defending champion Elena Rybakina survived a Centre Court scare to reach the Wimbledon second round on Tuesday.

Defending champion Elena Rybakina survived a Centre Court scare to reach the Wimbledon second round on Tuesday. Rybakina saw off experienced Shelby Rogers of the United States 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 in front of the watching Roger Federer, the retired eight-time champion who was a special guest in the royal box. The 24-year-old Kazakh arrived in London under a cloud after struggling with a virus which saw her suffer an early loss in Berlin before pulling out of Eastbourne.

“I’m feeling much better although it wasn’t easy to get back to fitness,” said Rybakina. “I’m happy to get the win and it gives more confidence for the next round.”

Rogers, 31, had defeated Rybakina on grass at ‘s-Hertogenbosch last year and initially she was in charge again under the roof of Centre Court as the All England Club was deluged by torrential rain.

The champion double-faulted on the first point on her way to being broken. That was enough to give the 49th-ranked Rogers the foundation to claim the opening set.

Suddenly, Rybakina was looking at becoming the first defending champion to lose in the opening round since Steffi Graf was beaten by Lori McNeil in 1994. However, she steadied the ship, racing into a 5-0 lead in the second set before levelling the tie.

A double break in the decider then set her comfortably on her way to victory and a second round clash with either Alize Cornet of France or Japan’s Nao Hibino.

Alcaraz in ruthless mood

Carlos Alcaraz made a confident start to his bid for a first Wimbledon title as the world number one routed French veteran Jeremy Chardy on Tuesday. Alcaraz’s emphatic 6-0, 6-2, 7-5 first round victory underlined his status as the main challenger to reigning champion Novak Djokovic.

The 20-year-old, who has five titles to his name already this season, is in fine form after winning his maiden grass-court trophy at Queen’s Club last month.

Although Alcaraz, who won the US Open last year, sits top of the world rankings, Djokovic is the man to beat as he chases an eighth Wimbledon title. The Spaniard is seeded to meet world number two Djokovic in a blockbuster final at the All England Club.

Alcaraz, who made the last 16 at Wimbledon in 2022, was just five when Chardy played his first match at the tournament in 2008. Chardy, a former Wimbledon junior champion, will retire from singles tournaments after this year’s event.

The 36-year-old was no match for Alcaraz, whose potent combination of power, speed and a deft drop-shot makes him a formidable force on all surfaces. Under the Court One roof, which was closed due to rain, Alcaraz refused to give London-based Chardy a farewell party in front of his friends and family.

As rain thundered down on the roof, Alcaraz unleased a barrage of booming forehands as he sped through the first set in just 22 minutes.

Chardy finally got on the scoreboard in the third game of the second set, but Alcaraz kept his foot on the gas to seal a resounding victory.

In the second round, Alcaraz faces the winner of the all-French clash between Alexandre Muller and Arthur Rinderknech

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Novak Djokovic launched his bid for an eighth Wimbledon title and 24th Grand Slam triumph on Monday with his 40th successive win on Centre Court.

Novak Djokovic launched his bid for an eighth Wimbledon title and 24th Grand Slam triumph on Monday with his 40th successive win on Centre Court as Russian players defiantly marked their return from a controversial 2022 ban. The 36-year-old Djokovic, who has won the past four titles at the All England Club, defeated 68th-ranked Pedro Cachin of Argentina, 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) on the tournament’s showpiece court, where he has not lost since 2013. Djokovic even found time to help ground staff dry out probably the world’s most famous lawn after the surface became too slippery following a downpour.

The roof was closed but play did not resume for about 90 minutes, much to the frustration of the fans. “When I come out, I usually come out with racquets, not towels,” said Djokovic, whose 45 winners featured 13 aces.

“The conditions were not great under the roof, it was still slippery. I think it was definitely frustrating for the crowd waiting for us.”

Djokovic, bidding to match Roger Federer’s record of eight Wimbledon titles, goes on to face Australia’s Jordan Thompson for a place in the third round of a tournament he described as “the holy grail, the temple of tennis”. “What a second home to have,” he said. “It doesn’t get much better than Wimbledon in terms of history and tradition.”

World number two Djokovic has already pocketed the Australian Open and French Open this year. Winning a men’s-record 23rd major in Paris put him just one behind Margaret Court’s all-time singles mark of 24.

He is also half way to pulling off the first calendar Grand Slam since Rod Laver in 1969.

Seventh-seeded Andrey Rublev of Russia was the first men’s winner of the day, beating Australia’s Max Purcell 6-3, 7-5, 6-4. Twelve months ago, all Russian and Belarusian players were banned by Wimbledon in response to the invasion of Ukraine.

“I think obviously there were better options — not just to ban,” said Rublev who next faces compatriot Aslan Karatsev. “Because in the end, there was no difference. They did only worse to themselves.”

His 12th-seeded compatriot, Veronika Kudermetova, made the second round of the women’s singles by seeing off 38-year-old Kaia Kanepi of Estonia, a two-time quarter-finalist 7-6 (7/4), 6-4. World number one Iga Swiatek racked up the first five games on her way to sweeping past China’s Zhu Lin.

Swiatek, Pegula win Reigning US Open and French Open champion Swiatek came through 6-1, 6-3 against her 34th-ranked opponent. “I feel confident and did a good job of adjusting to grass,” said the 22-year-old Pole, who has yet to get past the last 16 at Wimbledon.

The No.4 seeded Jessica Pegula survived a severe scare from fellow American Lauren Davis in the first round of Wimbledon 2023 to advance to the second round on Monday. Pegula came break down in the third set to win the clash against Davis 6-2, 6-7(8), 6-3 in a match that lasted for two hours and 19 minutes.

Pegula has not lost in the first round of a Slam tournament since losing to Aryna Sabalenka at Roland Garros 2020, and she was able to maintain her record despite wasting three match points in the second-set tiebreak. She has advanced only as far as Wimbledon’s third round despite being a five-time major quarterfinalist.

The American had a strong opening set, conceding only three games off her serve and used Davis’ 13 unforced errors to her advantage.

This year’s tournament will be played under tightened security over fears that climate activists could disrupt matches following high-profile protests at other sporting events.

Three protesters from Just Stop Oil ran onto the ground during the second Ashes Test at Lord’s last week, sprinkling the group’s trademark orange powder. “Of course we’ve taken account of what we’ve seen elsewhere so security has been uplifted in various places around the grounds,” said All England Club chief executive Sally Bolton.

The event will also see a relaxing of the club’s famously strict all-white clothing rule. In a bid to ease period anxiety, female players will be allowed to wear dark-coloured underwear beneath their white skirts. “I wore black shorts at the Eastbourne tournament so it really helped,” said British player Heather Watson.

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India’s Yuki Bhambri bagged his first ATP Tour title after clinching a win in the men’s doubles final of Mallorca Championships 2023 in Spain on Saturday.

India’s Yuki Bhambri bagged his first ATP Tour title after clinching a win in the men’s doubles final of Mallorca Championships 2023 in Spain on Saturday. Bhambri and Lloyd Harris continued the perfect start to their partnership by winning the Mallorca Championships doubles title as they defeated the Indian-South African duo Robin Haase and Philipp Oswald 6-3, 6-4 in the ATP 250 final, completing their run without losing a set. The trophy represents both men’s first singles and doubles ATP Tour victory. Only Harris had ever advanced to a tour-level final, once in doubles and twice in singles.

“Definitely a lot of fun. We went in with no expectations I think this week. We just enjoyed playing, took it match by match and had a great tournament. It’s a great city, a great place and I really enjoyed playing here,” 30-year-old Bhambri was quoted as saying by ATP.com.

“We had so much fun out there. We really enjoyed it. I didn’t even know I was going to play this week. For me, it’s just all a bonus. Super stoked with the title,” added Harris, who became the first South African to win an ATP Tour title since Raven Klaasen last year in Seoul.

Bhambri and Harris won the match after eliminating top seeds Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in the semifinals and fourth seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos in the quarterfinals. Eight aces helped them win 90% of their first-serve points, and they only faced two break points, saving one.

Haase and Oswald fell to 1-2 in ATP Tour finals as a team with the defeat.

Courtesy of the win, Bhambri, currently ranked 75th in the ATP doubles tennis rankings, is all set to jump up to a career-best 58th position in the standings.

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German-born British tennis player Jan Choinski makes his Wimbledon debut on Monday, hoping skills picked up as a ballet dancer will help him pirouette into the second round.

German-born British tennis player Jan Choinski makes his Wimbledon debut on Monday, hoping skills picked up as a ballet dancer will help him pirouette into the second round. “It will be a totally new experience for me. I cannot be more thankful,” said the 27-year-old journeyman who has taken an unusual route to tennis’s most prestigious event. Both his parents were professional ballet dancers. His mother Dominique was born in Singapore, the daughter of a naval officer, before she moved to live in Southampton on the English south coast.

She became a dancer with the Royal Ballet in London before joining a company in Germany where she met Choinski’s Polish father Andrzej, also a professional dancer.

Choinksi grew up in Germany, in the picturesque city of Koblenz on the Rhine.

“I danced at my parents’ ballet school until I was 12,” said Choinski who still lives in Germany.

“But it was never in my mind to become a professional ballet dancer. It was a way of building myself up for tennis.”

Choinski represented Germany in his junior years, even making the semi-finals of the US Open boys tournament in 2014.

As a junior, he was a top 20 player.

Despite never having lived in the United Kingdom, he has always held British citizenship thanks to his mother.

In 2018, he switched allegiance.

Despite then needing surgery on his hip and shoulder, which stalled his progress with his adopted country, Choinski has reached a career high 167 in the world.

That was enough to earn him a wildcard for this year’s Wimbledon.

However, he faces a stern test on Monday when he tackles experienced Dusan Lajovic.

The 52nd-ranked Serb stunned Novak Djokovic on his way to winning the Banja Luka title in April.

Cheering on Choinski will be his mother, father, who also now works as his coach, as well as his girlfriend.

“Having a British mum and playing the tournament that she lives the most for and having her here, I’m really thankful for that,” he added.

“There’s not a lot of my family left in the UK since my grandfather passed away two years ago.

“But maybe I’ll get more support in the second week when I reach the quarter-finals!”

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In a video that went viral on social media, Nadal was spotted at the venue, but unlike what most expect, the Spaniard was there to support his compatriot Lopez.

Rafael Nadal has been put of action since January this year. An injury on his hip during the shoch second-round exit in Australian Open 2023 saw Nadal skip the remaining hardcourt events followed by the claycourt season as well, including the French Open, where he won an unprecedented 14 titles. He recently underwent a successful surgery on his hip and his presently recovering from it, implying that he is likely to miss the remainder of the year before he returns in 2024, which is likely to be his final year in his professional career.

This means as world tennis gears up for the third Grand Slam of the calendar year where Novak Djokovic will be gunning for a record-equalling eighth title at the SW19 and further solidify his spot at the top of the Grand Slam list, with Carlos Alcaraz tipped as the only player to stop the rampage, Nadal, a two-time champion at the All England Club, will be missing the tournament.

However, a surprising appearance at a pre-Wimbledon event on Tuesday left fans emotional. The event was at his hometown in Mallorca, which hosts an annual grass-court 250 event. In a video that went viral on social media, Nadal was spotted at the venue, but unlike what most expect, the Spaniard was there to support his compatriot Feliciano Lopez.

The 22-time Grand Slam winner was present merely as a spectator along with his wife Maria Francisca Perello to support Lopez in what is his final tournament in his career.

In a press conference held last month where he had announced his withdrawal from the the French Open, Nadal had revealed his intention to return at the end of the year for the Davis Cup. However, following his surgery, it was said that he would require at least six months of time to fully recover. This means he would return directly in 2024, which will be his final year on tour.

“My idea is to try to say good-bye to all the tournaments next year and try to enjoy that [while] being competitive,” Nadal said in a press conference at his academy in Spain. “The chances [of that] are much higher if I stop.”

He added: “I’d like to give myself the option to end my career on a tennis court, feeling like a good tennis player and fighting for big tournaments. Whether that’s viable or not, we’ll see in the future”

“I do not deserve to end my career like this. I think that I have done enough effort during my sports career to end it in a different way, not in a press conference.”

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