Tennis: Alcaraz Starts Wimbledon Defence With Victory
Spanish tennis star Carlos Alcaraz started the defence of his Wimbledon title with victory after defeating Estonian Mark Lajal 7-6(3) 7-5 6-2 to book his place in the second round.
While injury woes have plagued many of the players who have also hoisted the Challenge Cup in recent years, with question marks over the participation of Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, Alcaraz showed he was fighting fit despite a less than ideal build-up to the grasscourt major.
The third seed, who admitted he even gets nervous practising on the spiritual home of grass court tennis, played brilliantly to beat qualifier Lajal, 7-6(3) 7-5 6-2 on an overcast day in southwest London.
Picking up where he left off…@carlosalcaraz advances to the second round, beating Mark Lajal 7-6(3), 7-5, 6-2#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/TeyEXfAopw
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 1, 2024
“Stepping on this court, it’s the most beautiful court I’ve played on. I still get nerves when I’m playing here,” Alcaraz, whose Queen’s Club title defence ended with an early exit last month, said courtside.
“I played for 45 minutes here on Thursday and it’s the first time I get nervous practising. I’m glad and I’m a privileged guy to play on this court. When I walk around, I get goosebumps. I remember last year and that was a great feeling.”
World number one and top seed Jannik Sinner suffered a mid-match injury scare after a slip and was briefly troubled by Germany’s Yannick Hanfmann, before winning 6-3 6-4 3-6 6-3 to set up a mouth-watering all-Italian clash against 2021 runner-up Matteo Berrettini.
“That’s going to a big challenge for me,” Sinner said.
Sinner seals victory in style
The world No.1 defeats Jannick Hanfmann 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 to advance to the Second Round!#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/jzc1vdwosr
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 1, 2024
