Let Andymonium begin

Andy Murray celebrates winning a point at Wimbledon 2008. Ladies and gentlemen – Andymonium will begin (properly) this afternoon on Centre Court. Fair enough, the phenomenon has been gathering momentum for the past few months, but the official launch of that two weeks of British madness that is following our best player through the rounds in SW19 begins today once Serena Williams and Andy Roddick have completed their afternoon’s work. Andy Murray will kick off his campaign against Robert Kendrick, the world No.76, from America. In theory, the world No.3 facing a bloke ranked 73 places below him should be fairly straightforward but Scotland’s finest is taking nothing for granted. Grand Slam tournaments are not like your run of the mill events and every early round is potential banana skin for the big stars, while for the lower ranked men, they are a chance to make a name for themselves. “I’m focusing totally on the first round. Not looking past him at all,” Murray said of Kendrick. “He's a tough grass court player. He obviously proved that when he nearly beat [Rafael] Nadal here [in 2006]. He has a big game, plays very aggressive and takes a lot of chances. So, no, no chance of me underestimating him.” So, then, down to the nitty gritty. Murray and Kendrick have played each other three times, with Murray winning all three matches. Indeed, Kendrick has only managed to prise one set from the Scot’s grasp. And when they met on a grass court – in Newport, Rhode Island, three years ago – Kendrick did not win a game as Murray walloped him 6-0, 6-0. Kendrick has only ever won three matches at Grand Slam level. He has been plugging away at the singles since 2006 (this is his 14th Grand Slam) but always he seems to run into a brick wall when he plays at the major events. Murray, by contrast, is the second highest seed in the draw, a quarter-finalist here last year and at the French Open a few weeks ago and was the runner-up at the US Open in September. Still, Kendrick’s greatest moment as a professional came here at Wimbledon when he held a two-set lead over Rafael Nadal three years ago. The stage was set for a huge upset – the second seed kicked out in the second round. Except that Kendrick could not keep up the pressure and Nadal clawed his way back. "That's my fondest memory in tennis, and hopefully I can go out and give another good show like that,” Kendrick said. “I didn't close the deal that day. Andy is a different opponent from Rafa, and he's given me problems in the past. Andy does everything well. He's the world No. 3 for a reason. He's got an all-round good game. “I like grass. It's got a little slower, which doesn't help me too much, but if the weather is hot and the balls are moving and I'm serving well, you just never know. I'm a guy who goes for his shots, but I'm not going to serve and volley too much against him because he's such a good returner so I'm going to have to mix it up." At least Kendrick was talking a good fight but putting the theory into practice may prove a little harder this afternoon. "It's not a very good draw,” he admitted. “I've played him a few times before and he's a tough opponent. I hope I have a good day." With all due respect to Kendrick, there will be very few people on Murray Mount (formerly known as Henman Hill) who will be hoping he has a good day. Andymonium is warming up nicely and is scheduled to erupt on Centre Court today, third match on.

Quotes of the day - Tuesday 23 June 2009

Daniel Evans "Oh, don't get there, because otherwise you're gonna see a lot of balls flying around and racquets, and a lot of swearing. I don't think you want that extreme." Marat Safin explains how the world would work if the players were allowed to express their emotions without fear of censure. "I don't know. Probably not a lot. I'll just keep it, rainy day. I might not be a tennis player soon, might be stacking shelves. I haven't had to think about it but Tesco's are offering, though." Great Britain’s Daniel Evans proves that his head is definitely not stuck in the clouds with a good old dash of realism when asked what he would be doing with his prize money after losing to Nikolay Davydenko in the first round. "We're just a talented nation. I don't know how to explain it." Jelena Jankovic offers the frankest of explanations as to why both her and her Serbian compatriots are riding on the crest of a purple patch of late. "Yeah, it's amazing that she's still coming back and still playing at this level. I think that's great, and she's in such good shape. So yeah, I'm really impressed." Caroline Wozniacki on her defeated opponent, 38-year-old Kimiko Date Krumm. Who says youngsters have no respect for their elders these days? "There's a lot more pressures to deal with other than the outfit. Got to make sure everything is in, not escaping. It's all good." With a number of players grabbing the headlines at this year's Championships for their fashion displays Venus Williams is demanding a very minimal requirement from her kit sponsors. "She have big weapon." Kimiko Date Krumm reveals the rather alarming reason why she suffered a first round defeat to Caroline Wozniacki. Maria Kirilenko (The Dane’s next opponent) you have been warned. "I don't care who you guys are writing about. You know, predicting two weeks from now, that's not how we go about our tournaments. I know it's great and your job is to sensationalize stuff and get it out there. You know, you got to make people read about the sport." Andy Roddick appears to have the world’s press well and truly worked out. He knows too much. "I think maybe one winnable match. I think I played one year Kevin Kim. That was definitely a winnable match for me. The other matches were pretty tough." Alex Bogdanovic responds to a question about whether his eight defeats were winnable. "I've got a weird head. Things like that don't bother me." A very honest Joshua Goodall speaking after his first round defeat to Michael Llodra. For the sake of British tennis let’s hope he was talking about his racket.

One to watch: Bethanie Mattek-Sands

Bethanie Mattek-Sands The eccentric dress sense of American Bethanie Mattek-Sands tells you she always likes to be the centre of attention.She has turned up on the tennis court wearing leopard-print outfits, a cowboy hat, toga-type attire and even a soccer kit. So expect a similarly bizarre outfit when she takes on Samantha Stosur of Australia on Court 12 at midday today. But Mattek-Sands, ranked 57th in the world, would rather that people talk about her tennis than her dress sense. She certainly impressed at Wimbledon last time around, reaching the fourth round: a career best in Grand Slams for the lady from Minnesota. On her way, Mattek-Sands produced a fine performance to knock out former finalist Marion Bartoli, before her progress was halted by eventual finalist Serena Williams. Mattek-Sands has seen her season disrupted by injuries so has no recent form to talk about and a five-match winless run dating back to the first week in May is not the best preparation for a Grand Slam. But grass suits the 24-year-old’s game, which is based around powerful ground strokes. Mattek-Sands tends to prefer the faster surfaces – she reached her only WTA Tour final in Quebec City on carpet in November, the same month in which she married insurance executive Justin Sands. While it is clear that Mattek-Sands is very much the underdog against 18th seed Stosur, the Australian’s record in the Wimbledon singles in less than impressive. The 25-year-old reached the semi-finals at Roland Garros last month but has won just three singles matches in six years at SW19, which is surprising given her serve and volley style. Her powerful serve, which is regularly fired in above 120mph, is a potent weapon, particularly in doubles competition. Stosur and doubles partner Lisa Raymond have won two Grand Slam titles and finished as runners-up last year at the All England Club. Stosur and Mattek-Sands have never met before but with Stosur’s indifferent record on grass in singles competition and Mattek-Sand’s unpredictability, this is likely to be an entertaining match with a good chance of an upset.

Wozniacki bridges age gap

Caroline Wozniacki Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark may be regarded as the future of women’s tennis but she had to survive an almighty scare in the first round against a player who first appeared at Wimbledon before she was even born. Kimiko Date Krumm, aged 38, played her first match at SW19 way back in 1989, a year before 18-year-old Wozniacki entered the world. And Date Krumm, who reached the semi-finals here in 1996, stunned Wozniacki by taking the first set and breaking twice in the second to lead 3-1. But Eastbourne winner Wozniacki, in the form of her young life, finally showed why she is so well regarded. She went on to claw back the second set then raced away with the third to eventually prevail 5-7, 6-3, 6-1. Despite taking a 2-0 lead in the first set, Wozniacki struggled early on against Date Krumm’s game. The Japanese lady, who has only recently returned to the Tour after a near 12-year absence, showed fine grass-court aptitude, winning crucial points at the net. “I knew kind of what to expect from her, and I knew that she's been doing good on grass before,” Wozniacki admitted after the match. “The game was just different from what I am used to. She was playing really flat, and I really had to get under the ball a lot." "She took advantage of that when I was playing short and came to the net and was playing well.” It was Wozniacki's unforced errors that proved crucial in a topsy-turvy first set. At 5-6 Date Krumm broke the Dane at the third time of asking with a wonder shot down the line. Date Krumm continued to roll back the years at the start of the second set and Wozniacki looked in real danger of going out at the first stage. Wozniacki was struggling with her serve with Date Krumm twice breaking to lead 3-1. But the Dane found an extra gear, and with her powerful ground strokes, eventually established control of the match. She won the next five games to take the set and never looked back. With Date Krumm tiring and calling for the trainer, Wozniacki easily took the decisive set 6-1. "It's amazing that she's still coming back and still playing at this level," said Wozniacki. "I think that's great, and she's in such good shape. I'm really impressed." And despite her slow start, 2006 junior winner Wozniacki is confident about her chances at the rest of The Championships. "I like grass," she said. "I think it suits my game, and I usually like it fast. I like the shorter rallies. I like being the one who decides to open up the court first. And I think that my game suits the grass. I think that I've showed that, also, by winning Eastbourne and playing some good matches there." Russian Maria Kirilenko, who got the better of Petra Kvitova, is next up for Wozniacki in the second round. "Today I could have been out," added Wozniacki. "I'm just looking at one match at a time. Kirilenko's a good player, so I need to be 100% focused." Court 2 - Ladies' Singles - 1st Round Caroline Wozniacki DEN (9) 5 6 6 Kimiko Date Krumm JPN 7 3 1

Ivanovic survives scare to win

Ivanovic digs deep Ana Ivanovic was taken to the brink of defeat by Lucie Hradecka, the newcomer from the Czech Republic, and had to save two match points before clinching victory 5-7, 6-2, 8-6. Ivanovic, the 13th seed and a former French champion, has always found Wimbledon particularly challenging and she was fighting to avoid going out of the tournament in the first round for the first time in her career. Against Hradecka, the Serb might have thought she held a clear chance of winning. The Czech woman, ranked 58th in the world, was playing at Wimbledon for the first time, having made her Grand Slam debut in the French championships last month. She had tried to qualify for Wimbledon on three previous occasions. The 26-year-old Hradecka lists grass as her favourite surface and certainly displayed an understanding of the skills required. Her powerful hitting gave her the first set 7-5 after 42 minutes. Hradecka had been the first to drop serve in the seventh game but broke back imnmediately. The second set was a different story. Hradecka, her left thigh heavily strapped, was not able to sustain the accuracy in her ground strokes and let Ivanovic break through in the fifth game. The Serb then won three more in a row to take the second set and square the match after 80 minutes. Court 4, by this time, was beginning to fall into almost total shade. As darkness beckoned, it was Hradecka who ran into trouble as she dropped serve to trail 5-4. Serving, Ivanovic went to match point with a service winner. But a forehand down the line from Hradecka saved that and she closed out the break back as Ivanovic slipped and fell at the back of the court. At 6-5, Hradecka had two match points on Ivanovic’s serve. But Ivanovic counter-attacked with a service winner and a smash to escape. Hradecka then lost her serve to love. Ivanovic, now riding a final wave of confidence, reached match point with a net cord forehand and went through to the second round on a winning serve.

Baltacha bests Bondarenko

Baltacha victory roar British wildcard entrant Elena Baltacha provided the only glimmer of inspiration for British women's tennis as she fought a rearguard action to snaffle the proverbial victory from the jaws of defeat, beating the Ukraine's Alona Bondarenko in three sets, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, on her third match point. At the start of the match the picture looked very different, as the 22-year-old Bondarenko strolled too easily through the first set. Baltacha looked out of sorts and her frustration at her own play was writ large on her face. But the feisty Briton was having none of it, and fought back valiantly against the Ukrainian, ranked 73 places above her, playing some sweet groundstrokes along the way. The third set ebbed and flowed and might have gone either way at 4-4, but it was Baltacha who pulled out the delightful victory. After the match she acknowledged this was a big win for her. The crowd clearly played a small part – she said: "it was so lovely. I tried hard to control my emotion, because everyone was getting up. Everyone was clapping, you know. I had goose pimples pretty much everywhere." She meets Belgian Kirsten Flipkens in round two. "She's obviously playing really well. So it's another tough match. But I'm looking forward to it, of course," Baltacha said. "I've got an opportunity, without a doubt. If I play good tennis, like I played today and just keep believing, then I think I've got a very good chance of getting through to the third round."

Top seeds shine on mixed day for Brits

Murray racquet From the most important British view of all, Day Two of The 2009 Championships went well. Andy Murray, seeded third and propelled by a surge of expectation, duly saw off the American Robert Kendrick, but not without the stutter that cost him the second set on a tiebreak. He won in four sets to line up a second round meeting with Latvia's Ernests Gulbis, who saw off the Italian qualifier, Riccardo Ghedin, in straight sets. The day did not go nearly so well for the other British hopes in action, mostly via the wild card entry route. Alex Bogdanovic lost for the eighth straight year, and the other home male hopes, Dan Evans and Jason Goodall were also eliminated, though Goodall made a brave effort, taking France's Michael Llodra to five sets. There were defeats, too, for two of the three British women - Anne Keothavong and Katie O'Brien - but Elena Baltacha struck a notable blow for the home nation late in the evening by eliminating Alona Bondarenko of the Ukraine after dropping the opening set and thus joins Murray as the only other Briton in the second round. Perhaps the brightest performance of the day came out on Court 3, where Australia's lone male representative, Lleyton Hewitt, turned on the sort of style that won him the title in 2002 as he routed the American Robby Ginepri. After losing the opening three games, Hewitt won 18 of the next 21. However, the 14th-seeded Marat Safin's hopes of a repeat of the sort of show he put on last year by reaching the semi-finals were rudely brought down when he fell to the American qualifier, Jesse Levine, in four sets. But there was good progress for Chile's Fernando Gonzalez, the man who ended Murray's hopes at Roland Garros recently, while another Latin American, the fifth seed Juan Martin Del Potro, was not troubled by the French veteran Arnaud Clement. He may find himself required to work harder against his next opponent, Hewitt. Another long-time French competitor, Fabrice Santoro, did much better than Clement by eliminating the 33rd seed, Nicolas Kiefer of Germany. The defending women's champion, Venus Williams, started off confidently by defeating the Swiss teenager Stefanie Voegele for the loss of five games, while the top seed, Dinara Safina of Russia, did much better than her brother by winning her opening match comfortably. Other leading women's seeds to progress were the 2006 champion, Amelie Mauresmo, the Serbs Jelena Jankovic and Ana Ivanovic, the fast-improving Dane, Caroline Wozniacki and the Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova, fresh from victory at the French Open.

Roddick serves up strong start

Roddick rocket Andy Roddick and Jeremy Chardy fight it out at the net, in true grass court style. Andy Roddick’s reputation as one of the strongest and fastest servers in the game was underlined yet again as he powered down 21 aces during a 6-3, 7-6 (7-3), 4-6, 6-3 win over France’s Jeremy Chardy. In hot conditions just made for dominant serving, the 6th seed thundered through much of his match against Chardy to demonstrate that he means business in his ninth Wimbledon - especially if such summery weather stays in the SW19 area. Most of the play was harsh and short. It took Chardy a few games to catch on to the pace and precision which Roddick was displaying. Then the Frenchman had some power points of his own to stop Roddick running away with the match. At first it seemed as if Chardy, the Wimbledon junior champion two years ago, was going to be overwhelmed by Roddick’s aggressive urgency, which took the American into a 5-0 lead in a matter of minutes. But Chardy stemmed the flow to salvage three games from the first set, which took 24 minutes. He had even more success in the second set, fighting off a break point in the seventh game and three more in the ninth as the set moved almost inexorably to a tiebreak. That breaker went very much Roddick’s way – a Chardy tumble cost the Frenchman one point and he was also beaten by a Roddick backhand down the line. But Chardy was far from beaten and responded magnificently by winning the third set, breaking serve in the ninth game and then holding with a pair of service winners after 103 minutes. But it came at a cost as Chardy needed attention to his ankle at the end of the set. In the fourth set, Roddick left nothing to chance. He took Chardy’s serve in the second game and again in the sixth. Then, at 5-3, he served for the match and a love game completed his working day. Roddick’s mission this year is to re-establish himself a little nearer the top of the game while he has the chance. He has a new coach, Larry Stefanki, who has targeted Wimbledon as the most obvious target for Roddick’s abilities. After all, Roddick has twice been a finalist so it may just need a fraction extra all round to make the essential difference. Today was a fine start.

Champion Venus playing it cool

Venus applies extra spin to the ball and ends up with a lasso follow through as the defending champion begins her campaign on Centre Court. Pressure is a strange thing. For some it is a crushing burden; for some it is a motivating force. And then there is Venus Williams. The defending champion is back at the All England Club, her 13th visit in as many years, and got her challenge for her third consecutive title and her sixth in all off to a flying start with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Stefanie Voegele from Switzerland. After all the hullabaloo over Roger Federer’s opening match – and Wimbledon outfit – on Monday, this was an understated opening to what could be a blistering campaign. So, did the champion feel any pressure in coming back to defend the title that she values above all others? Er, no. Not really. “Everyone gets nervous,” she said, not sounding in the least bit nervous, concerned or edgy. “It's just, you know, how you deal with it. You have to deal with it just as you deal with not being nervous hopefully.” Ah, so that’s how it’s done, then. Actually, the relief of anxiety is done by establishing yourself as one of the best grass court players of the modern era. Even Serena, Williams’s younger and more obviously self-confident sister, thinks that big sis is the best thing on the green stuff that she has ever seen. Wimbledon is where Venus feels comfortable. Wimbledon is where Venus feels at home. Wimbledon is where Venus believes she can always win. “I just think that having won this title multiple times, you get that sense of what it takes to win,” she said. “And I definitely have a good grip on that, what it takes to win this title. I think that's just what it is. “If you pick one slam to win, it's got to be this one. You know, I've always been in the position to win the others and, you know, have been just as far as the finals and ran into a pretty tough player, so was a little bit unlucky. “But overall, you know, I feel like I had the game, and always have the game, to put myself in a position at any of the majors. So I have to just keep on trying.” Playing against Voegele helped Williams’s cause enormously. The 19-year-old lives near Zurich and was brought up a stone’s throw (for those with a very strong throwing arm) from Roger Federer’s family home in Basel. As her serve unravelled and her hopes evaporated, she could pose no threat whatsoever to the champion – especially the champion with her eyes on another title. Williams was barely out of breath at the end of her straight sets win. “It was pretty straightforward,” Williams admitted. “I really enjoyed being out there. It's a special moment when you walk back as defending champion on that court, throw those balls up for that first point. It's a really great feeling. “Just playing on the grass, I think you have the opportunity to make fantastic shots that are very entertaining and great plays. I think the game is more fast‑paced. In a lot of ways, it makes it a lot more exciting, the exchanges.” There were few exchanges to trouble her in the opening round, leaving Williams with plenty left in the tank for the challenges that are to come. With Kateryna Bondarenko to face in the second round and her sister safely tucked away in the other half of the draw, she is keeping the nerves in check with some ease. Only the bookies are ramping up the expectation and have her as second favourite, a gnat’s whisker behind her sister. No pressure, then, Venus.

Murray lets his tennis do the talking

Andy Murray Andy Murray could not help but focus on the set he lost after he survived a wobble to beat Robert Kendrick in four sets. “I’ve played him a few times so I knew what to expect,” said the number three seed of the American. “I was disappointed to lose the second set because I had a couple of chances and didn’t take them. He didn’t really have any chances on my serve in the second. I was expecting him to go for some big shots. He pulled some off at the end of the second set and he served well for three sets. “But in the whole match he had two break points. When you’re serving like that and not giving someone too many opportunities, it’s easier to stay calm because you’re the one that’s creating the opportunities. Sometimes in five-set matches on grass it takes a bit longer to get the breakthrough. But once I did, I felt good. Staying calm was a huge part of winning because he came up with some huge serves and that can get frustrating.” He was certainly unruffled when an official asked that he cover the brand name on a water bottle he was using on court because it was not in line with the official Wimbledon water supplier. “I definitely didn’t get a ticking off,” he explained. “I use litre-and-a-half bottles for my energy drink. I was still allowed to use the bottles, I just had to take the label off. It happens at a lot of tournaments. I’ve had to do it quite a lot of times this year. Normally we take them off before the match but sometimes we forget.” Murray, who has of course had huge domestic media attention in the build-up to The Championships, is sanguine that he is the only British male left in the draw. “It’s disappointing but I’m not worrying about what those guys are doing. I’m worrying about my own tennis. Whether there are 10 Brits in or just one, I’m still just going to take care of my own business. If you don’t do that you get distracted. I need 100% focus on myself in the next couple of weeks.” That is probably why he can take with a large pinch of salt the reported comments of 1987 Wimbledon champion Pat Cash, who is said to have described the Scot as “boring” and having a “monotonous” voice. “I don’t really care,” smiled Murray. “I’ve said I don’t think my voice is particularly interesting but I let my tennis do the talking. I think my tennis is exciting.”

Murray triumphs after tough tussle

Murray backhand The first hurdle has been cleared and Andy Murray is through to the second round of The Championships. It was not his greatest performance – although it was a match his opponent will probably treasure for months to come – but it was just enough to get the job done. Murray won 7-5, 6-7 (3-7), 6-3, 6-4 and his 2009 campaign was under way. As he raised his arms in victory, so began Britain’s annual fortnight of madness. A nation that has made a virtue of reticence and a trademark of the stiff upper lip lets out its stays, paints its face, waves its flag and acts like a lunatic as the object of the country’s affection tries to make his way through the draw. The moment came at 5.09pm as Murray, Britain’s top man and the world’s third best player, opened his 2009 campaign against Robert Kendrick. Andymonium had begun. Admittedly, it started slowly but over the course of two hours and 38 minutes, it built up a full head of steam. After a decade or more of Tim Henman’s white-knuckle rides on Centre Court, the crowd is still not entirely sure about Mr Murray. His three previous visits here have been marked, in the most part, by simple, controlled wins so allowing the flag-waving faithful little chance to get involved. This was not what they had come to expect when watching a Brit. It was only last year that they really play their part, helping to pull him through a five-set thriller with Richard Gasquet in the fourth round. That was more like it – their boy needed them and they were happy to deliver. But it was not to last. This year the fans will have noted Murray’s rise through the rankings and his seemingly routine wins over the biggest and the best. Clearly they were not needed. Murray knew how to win by himself. Now what were they going to do? But the Centre Court crowd is a loyal group. As Murray scampered to a 4-2 lead in his opening match, the applause was warm and ever-so-slightly relieved. Maybe the crowd really could have a night off and just kick back, enjoy the tennis and have some fun. Murray was all over Kendrick. The 29-year-old American was as tight as a drum while Murray was clattering his serve, finding his spot with his groundstrokes and passing Kendrick almost at will. Some of his shots were not so much inch-perfect as millimetre-perfect. But sometimes life can be just a bit too easy. For about 10 minutes, Murray let his concentration waver just slightly. At that very moment, Kendrick relaxed – and that is never a good combination for a chap hoping to reach the far end of the second week of the tournament. Kendrick has the sort of game that is brilliant when it works and a liability when it is slightly off. He can serve like a rocket, he can hit the ball so hard that you would think it could pierce concrete – and he had absolutely nothing to lose. As he grabbed back the break of serve, he started flinging himself around the court like a teenage Boris Becker and had clearly decided that attack was the best form of defence. If Kendrick was going to win, he would have to try every trick in the book; if he was going to lose, he was determined to enjoy his time on the main show court. Even when Murray took the first set, the American would not go away and chased Britain’s great hope all the way to the second set tiebreak and beyond. But the difference between Murray this year and the Murray of 2008 is that now he knows he has it in him to win a Grand Slam title. Now he feels like he belongs at the top end of the rankings. And now he knows how to win even when he is not playing at his brightest and best. And so Murray kept at it. He chased and harried and, in between times, found himself involved in some spectacular rallies. If this had been anyone other than Murray playing, the crowd would have loved every second – as it was, they enjoyed themselves but still had their nervous moments. And the more they reckoned Murray needed a bit of support, the louder they got. Only in the fourth set could everyone relax and just marvel at Kendrick’s pluck (a trait he obviously picked up from the locals during his long stay in Britain in the run-up to Wimbledon) and Murray’s skill. It was not a brilliant start to the Scot’s campaign but it was good enough to get him through to the next round. Kendrick played well beyond his No.76 ranking while the Scot knows he has considerable room for improvement. With a little luck and a prevailing wind, he should have a good few rounds left yet to hone his game to perfection. And if he gets himself into a spot of bother, there is always the crowd to help him through. Andymonium has begun.

Venus off to a flyer

Defending champion Venus Williams stoops low during her opening match against Stefanie Voegele. Switzerland's Stefanie Voegele during her first round match against defending champion Venus Williams Venus Williams opened the defence of her Wimbledon singles crown in impressive fashion with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over the Swiss teenager Stefanie Voegele. A good work-out with a hot sun on her back would have been exactly what Venus was looking for as she embarked on the pursuit of her sixth Wimbledon victory in the past 10 years, and that was what the sturdy Voegele, aged 19, provided. The Swiss is already being touted as a worthy successor to Martina Hingis and while such comparisons are clearly premature, Voegele is a newcomer of much promise, possessed of a devastating backhand and brimful of determination. What prevented her from doing better against the reigning champion was a failure to find accuracy and penetration on the first serve, with a weak second serve being heavily punished. As a six-footer, Williams towered over the 5ft 6in Voegele but had much more difficuly keeping her footing in the early minutes, twice ending up on the turf. But, like any early match rustiness, it passed after a couple of tightly contested service games and the American dictated the destination of the opening set with a string of three games, including two breaks of serve, in which she won 14 points in a row to go 5-1 ahead. A newcomer such as Voegele, making her debut in Wimbledon's main draw, might have been overawed and destroyed by such a blitz, but the fashion in which she promptly broke the Williams serve indicated that, as her supporters insist, there is more to come from the 97th-ranked girl from Lueggern. After missing a set point at 5-2 by double-faulting, Venus went a set up after 32 minutes in the next game with a devastating backhand down the line. An early break of serve in the second set seemed to have put Williams on the road to an early afternoon finish, only for Voegele to level things by capturing the Venus serve in a lengthy game on her fifth break point. But that, as it turned out, was the peak moment of her Centre Court outing. Venus, upping her level of commitment and intensity, clearly decided it was time to show who was the Grand Slam champion out there, sweeping up the next four games to chalk up a win in an hour and 16 minutes. There were a couple of blips along the way, including an embarrassing attempted smash that bounced before it reach the net as she served for victory, followed by a double-fault - and then an ace. But the cheery wave she offered the Centre Court customers afterwards was the equivalent of saying 'You'll be seeing more of me, folks.' After the match, Venus described her victory as "pretty straightforward". "I don't put so much stock into first round matches or any round matches, actually. I mean, you really have to start putting stock in it when you lose, figure out why," she said. "But it's just important to get to the next round and regroup and get better from there. So I just bank on that I know how to play tennis and go from there."

Roddick lays low and stays focused

Roddick rocket Andy Roddick, the American number one, is no stranger to attracting headlines after wowing the press year after year with his witty, opinionated interviews and tying the knot with gorgeous swimsuit model Brooklyn Decker in a ceremony in April that saw music legend Elton John perform. But, entering this year’s Wimbledon as a married man, Roddick admits he’s happy laying low and letting top seeds Andy Murray and Roger Federer grab the limelight. Speaking at his press conference after his four-set 6-3, 7-6 (7-3), 4-6, 6-3 win over Frenchman Jeremy Chardy, Roddick certainly looked a very different character from the man perhaps many are used to. His usual banter was replaced with straight-forward answers, refusing to let the conversation stray far from tennis matters at hand. The 26-year-old former US Open Champion said: "I felt happy today. I don't care who you guys are writing about. It doesn't matter. Doesn't matter to me. "You know, predicting two weeks from now, that's not how we go about our tournaments. I understand you have got to make people read about the sport. As players, we appreciate that, but that's not our job. Our job is to try to get through each round. As far as who's talking about what, I don't really care. I just want to go out and win matches. I’m just trying to keep focused." Roddick finds himself promoted to sixth seed after defending champion Rafael Nadal was forced to pull out of the tournament with an injury. The recognition is justified too after a good run of form from the popular American, twice a beaten finalist at the All England Club, which saw him reach the second week of the French Open and the semi-finals at Queen’s. He certainly got his SW19 campaign off to a flier today, opening the match against Chardy on Centre Court with two aces and racing to a 5-0 lead for the loss of just three points in 12 minutes. Luckily there was no sign of the ankle injury that forced him to retire from Queen’s against compatriot James Blake 10 days ago. He said: "My ankle's fine. At this point, it's not something that's even worth talking about. I’m glad to get that match out of the way. It’s good to advance." Roddick now looks ahead to his second round clash with Russian Igor Kunitsyn with confidence. He quipped: "At this point in my career, I'm not going to face many new scenarios. I've played everyone about 86 times each. It’s more strange facing a guy I’ve never played before and now it’s going to happen for the second time in a row. "But I feel like I probably know Kunitsyn's tendencies a little bit and he knows mine a little bit, even without having played before." Kind-hearted Andy also offered words of commiseration to his friend Blake who lost in the first round to Andreas Seppi yesterday. He said: "Yeah, you know, he's gone final, first round, final, first round. It's just unfortunate for him that the first rounds have come in Slams. He'll be the first to tell you he's had an inconsistent year, but James is certainly capable of going on a hot streak. "More than anything, I'm sure he's looking forward to getting back to the hard courts of the States. He'll just keep working at it. There's no magical scenario to kind of get out of it. You've just got to work. And it can turn. It can turn in a couple of matches. I'm sure that's what he's hoping for right now."

Relief for Safin as Wimbledon journey ends

Safin all roared out If only Marat Safin had retired last year; after his best performance at Wimbledon where the world No. 75 had beaten the third and ninth seed before losing to the five-time champion in the semi-final. That would be a fitting way to end things. Instead, the double Grand Slam winner bowed out in the first round to qualifier Jesse Levine on Court 18. For the 28-year-old, the end of his Wimbledon journey that had begun in 1998 was nothing more than a "relief". "This is the situation, and I have to deal with that. It was not really my day. Not the perfect thing. Not the way to finish my Wimbledon story. But anyway, it's okay. That's life. There is plenty of years coming towards me, so..." By his own admission, Safin was not suited to grass, "tough to move for me, for a tall guy, been struggling for years", and had problems keeping his emotions in check, "if everything accumulates inside of me, I cannot play. I cannot think. I cannot perform. I cannot run. I'm just blocked. So I need to get a relief and start all over again". He said he never played his best tennis here. "I lost to everybody I think here who I could. I didn't even get to play with the good players, except Federer and Djokovic, and that's it." If Safin felt no sadness to see the back of the All England Club, he also was not bitter about a career that had promised more than the two Grand Slam titles it delivered. "Unfortunately, I was a little bit unlucky with my injuries. That's the only thing that I regret, but I cannot do anything about it," Safin said. "But also I make a couple of great comebacks. But eventually the knee injury was really tough to come back from. I managed only to get into the top 20. But it took quite a long time to play tennis without any pain." Others may not judge his record so kindly, which is perhaps unfair for a player who won two majors in his 15 career singles titles. But anyone who saw him play would say that he deserved more and the adjective "underachiever" will feature in biographies. "In the history of tennis, everybody's an underachiever," Safin said. "Everybody. Every single person. Every single player is an underachiever. Agassi should have been winning, I don't know, 15 Grand Slams. Sampras should have been winning 20 Grand Slams. Federer should be winning, already should have 25. Rios at least five. So you know what I'm saying. It's like everybody's an underachiever. Everybody could do better." So what would have been a far reflection of Safin's talent? "I should probably have won a couple more, but I'm pretty satisfied with what I did."

Hewitt back to battling best

Hewitt handles The joy of fatherhood apart, there have been some bleak times for Lleyton Hewitt in recent years, culminating in a hip operation last year and a ranking that dipped outside the top 100 for the former world number one and 2002 Wimbledon champion. But today, in the warm sun out on Court 3, the man who used to play nearly all his matches on Wimbledon's two main show courts frolicked like the Lleyton of old as he thrashed American Robby Ginepri 6-4, 6-1, 6-1 in one hour 31 minutes. He did it the Hewitt way, too, on a court that used to bear the number two and the more ominous nickname of ‘Graveyard of Champions’. Many are the star names who have tumbled out on this patch of turf, from Pete Sampras and John McEnroe down, and when Hewitt promptly fell 3-0 behind there were fears that, if the court's number had changed, its reputation had not. But tradition - and an increasingly chastened Ginepri - were banished in harness as Hewitt swept 18 of the next 21 games. The only manner in which the 26-year-old from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, could match the man from Down Under was in the choice of back-to-front headgear. But the spectators were in no doubt about which cap was the more dominant once Hewitt had taken measure of the opposition and put it to flight. Though Ginepri is a loyal subscriber to the Wimbledon occasion (this was his seventh straight Championships appearance) his last win came back in 2004 and, after those first three games, there was no chance that the dismal sequence would be ended. After all those postwar glory years of Australian domination at this event, the shock statistic is that Hewitt is the only man from that nation to have made it into the men's draw, though on this showing he is a worthy representative. Increasingly sure on the serve - he struck 13 acres - and accurate off the ground, Hewitt not only destroyed Ginepri's game but undermined his health. After a second set that Hewitt won in just 22 minutes Ginepri called for the trainer and spent several minutes flat on his back having his neck massaged. Though he bravely opted to resume, it was difficult to tell whether the American was feeling worse or better, so comprehensively was he being outplayed by a rampant Hewitt. When he dropped serve for the fifth time to go 3-1 down in the third set, Ginepri's spirit was clearly broken too and the end was only delayed by another brief spell of treatment. The final blow, an arrowed backhand pass, was greeted with a roar of "C'mon" from a delighted Hewitt, who clearly revelled in the acclaim he received. Where better to get things back on course than Wimbledon, scene of his greatest triumph?

Del Potro powers past Clement

Juan Martin Del Potro The sleeveless shirt looks a little familiar. The Nike swoosh on the headband (a recurring theme on the showcourts of SW19 this year) rings a bell. The bloke wearing them is sitting in the top slot in the draw. Yes, but it’s still not Rafa. When Rafael Nadal announced last week that his knees were not up to the challenge of two weeks of lunging and bending on a grass court, 15,000 Centre Court ticket holders groaned. In the referee’s office, someone sighed. “Ah, we’ll have to rejig the draw. So, the fifth seed will move up to the top spot, the 17th seed will take the fifth seed spot, the…” and somewhere in the locker room, Juan Martin Del Potro gulped. Fifth seed? Blimey, that’s me. And so it was that Juan Martin Del Potro strode out on to No.1 Court as the new Rafa for 2009. And he made a fine fist of it, too, beating Arnaud Clement 6-3, 6-1, 6-2 in one hour and 37 minutes. Apart from the lack of sleeves and the clothing sponsor, there are few similarities between Del Potro and last year’s champion. Where Nadal’s muscle shirt clung tight to his pecs and reveals nothing but muscles from shoulder to wrist, Del Potro’s reveals nothing but… well, arms, really. They go on forever. Same with his legs. The fifth seed, world No. 5 and the best Argentine on the tour, is a collection of knees, elbows and limbs. Standing 6ft 6ins, he did not so much look down on the 5ft 8ins Clement as make the Frenchman look as if he were standing in a hole. And from the very first point, Clement realised he was in a really deep hole. Grass may not be Del Potro’s forte – he has been here twice before and gone out in the second round on both occasions – but so high is his confidence at the moment that he believes he can give anyone a run for their money, no matter what surface they are playing on. Until last year, the Argentine was just another one of those promising young men who flattered to deceive. Yes he could give the ball and almighty thump and, yes, with that height, his first serve was a potent weapon, but putting all the parts of his game together over the course of one or two weeks to win the title was a bit of a problem. And then, last summer, something clicked. As Del Potro made his way from Wimbledon to the US Open, he picked up four consecutive tour titles. He added to that with the Auckland trophy at the start of this season and then set off on a run to the sharp end of most of the major tournaments this year– the semi-finals in Roland Garros and the Madrid and Miami Masters and the quarter-finals of the Australian Open and the Indian Wells and Rome Masters. All of that moved him up to fifth spot in the world rankings and knocking on the door of the elite club at the very top of the world order. On grass, his game is still a bit of a work in progress and there are times when he looks like a giraffe lowering itself to drink as he tries to get down to a low bounce. No matter, his power, reach and ability to cover the court in a stride and half more than make up for that. Whether his confidence can carry him beyond the second round this time remains to be seen. But as Rafa replacements go, Del Potro is doing a fine job so far.

Gonzalez grinds down Russian

Fernando Gonzalez No.10 seed Fernando Gonzalez carved out a second round place but was initially made to fight against Russian Teimuraz Gabashvili before wrapping up a 7-5, 7-5, 6-3 victory. Support was clearly on the side of the Chilean, who walked out on Court 18 to ear-splitting applause. But while he may have been the bigger name, the match was by no means one-sided – at least in the first couple of sets anyway. Gabashvili held his own early on in the duel, which saw him match the speed and ferocity of Gonzalez’s groundstrokes in a largely baseline affair. It may have helped him that Gonzalez had not played any grass court tournaments in the run-up to Wimbledon. His last competitive match was at Roland Garros on clay nearly three weeks ago, when he was defeated in the semi-finals by Robin Soderling. Meanwhile, Gabashvili is having the best year of his career, having reached his highest ranking of No.59 in February. Indeed, there was not much to separate the two in the first set and when the Chilean required medical attention to his right knee, it seemed as if there was a potential for an upset. But Gonzalez managed to stay on top. He had four set points at 5-4 but Gabashvili dug his heels in and came off better in a series of superb rallies. But that Russian resistance could not be maintained and two games later a netted volley handed Gonzalez the set on his sixth set point. Drama unfolded in the second set when Gabashvili broke to lead 4-3 but then went 0-40 down on serve and smashed his racket. Gonzalez could not help but smile when his opponent wandered to the chair and changed his racket. He promptly broke him and pocketed the second set 7-5. By the third the Chilean had ruffled his 24-year-old opponent and he went on to comfortably claim the match in two hours and 14 minutes.

Ineffective Mauresmo flatters to deceive

Amelie Mauresmo Former ladies' singles champion Amelie Mauresmo clawed her way into the second round, battling her own fading powers as much as opponent Melinda Czink to win 6-1, 4-6, 6-2. The former No.2 court - still getting used to its new moniker of Court No.3 - looked as if it would retain its erstwhile “graveyard of champions” billing, but the French 17th seed, the title winner in 2006, rode her impeccable backhand and managed to fire down more aces than double faults to outlast the unheralded Hungarian. It must be tough for someone who has won Grand Slams on different surfaces, bested the Williams sisters during the mid-2000s and spent a decade in the upper echelons of the game to be given the run-around by a 26-year-old journeywoman who is currently enjoying her highest ever ranking at a lowly 54th in the world. But such is life for Mauresmo who has failed to reach the quarter-finals of a major since winning the Australia Open then Wimbledon in 2006. Her one-handed backhand is still arguably the best in the game, particularly since her rival Justine Henin retired last year, but her serve is no longer the reliable weapon that it was and her forehand something of a lottery. Whenever she seems to have turned a corner – winning the Open Gaz de France in Paris last February and securing three points to power France almost single-handedly past Slovakia in the Fed Cup in April – a setback inevitably follows. She crashed out to Anna-Lena Groenefeld in the first round at Roland Garros, and came perilously close to repeating the feat here today. The first set was Amelie at her vintage best. She dropped only two points on serve, won half a dozen points at the net with some crisp volleys and seized on her left-handed opponent’s hesitant service, clipping her trademark backhands at will in a 19-minute exhibition of grass-court tennis. And then it all went awry. Czink served stronger and focused on Mauresmo’s forehand, and as the set began to spiral out of control, the Frenchwoman continued to rush to the net, ill advisedly on most occasions and letting the Hungarian pass her at will. A brief rally saw Mauresmo claw a break back to 4-5, but Czink settled herself and served out to love to take it to a third set. The decider was a battle of nerves, or more accurately of two nervous players. Double faults were served up – four on each side – and breaks were exchanged. The air turned blue as Mauresmo cursed her waning abilities as she sent forehands awry on a regular basis. Ultimately she had enough in the tank to hold serve one last time, and then concluded the match with a fine running cross-court flick at full stretch. She herself will know only too well that the final point was mere window-dressing. Her quarter of the draw may have a dearth of grass-court specialists, but the 29-year-old will have to roll back the years if she is to prolong her stay in SW19 into a second week.

Safina fails to shine

Safe Safina If Dinara Safina is to make Wimbledon 2009 the place where she overturns the unhappy statistic of being the world number one without a Grand Slam title to her name, then she is going to have to play with significantly more authority than she could muster on No.1 Court today. A straight sets win is always handy, but Safina made hard work of her 7-5, 6-3 triumph over Spain’s Lourdes Dominguez Lino. The first set took almost an hour, and unfortunately showed Safina at her most unconvincing. Perhaps the Russian simply needs time to find her feet on grass after the long clay court season. But then again she has never advanced into the second week of Wimbledon in six previous attempts, whereas she has made at least the semi-finals at all the other Grand Slam events. The good news for Safina is that she cannot be dislodged from the number one spot whatever happens this fortnight. But her hopes cannot be soaring on this display. True, she broke early, for 2-1. But the point that brought her the break was hardly a monument to tactical genius. Twice Safina smashed unconvincingly, leaving Dominguez Lino with various options to pass her at the net – only for the 28-year-old Spaniard to tap the ball back to her opponent obligingly on both occasions. Safina had a chance to break again for 4-1, but Dominguez Lino saved it with an effective crosscourt backhand. Then, most unexpectedly, the Spaniard broke back, courtesy of a wild forehand and then a double fault from the number one seed. Dominguez Lino – one of 10 siblings, no less – is a stocky player who rose to her highest ranking of 40 three years ago. Currently the number 72, she produced a career best Grand Slam result at Roland Garros last month by making the third round, but she had not been beyond the first round in three previous main draw appearances at Wimbledon, and today was to prove no better. At 3-4 with serve, a pied wagtail decided to drop in on the action. The bird landed squarely in the middle of the netcord, obliging Safina to pause on her service at 30-all, before it flew away. The tiebreak looked a distinct possibility until at 5-5 Safina produced easily her best two successive points of the set – a winning drop shot and a solid backhand off a second serve – to break, and she took the set without further drama. She broke at once at the start of the second, but not without unnecessary errors postponing what should have been an easy conversion. The needless mistakes would not go away, and 23-year-old Safina seemed to spend every point either pumping her fist in self-affirmation, or wheeling away in frustration to berate herself on the baseline. A poker face is possibly not her greatest strength. She seemed to be getting into her stride with another break for 4-1, but handed it right back next game with a fluffed half-volley. The pattern repeated itself with Safina struggling to serve out the match, until at last she closed it out after 101 minutes.

Jankovic struggles to victory

Jelena Jankovic Jelena Jankovic, the sixth seed from Serbia, survived an injury scare before winning her opening match at Wimbledon against Julia Goerges 6-4, 7-6 (7-0) in one hour and 45 minutes on Court 3. After the first set, during which she lost a 5-1 lead, Jankovic called the trainer to have her right foot heavily bandaged. Although there was no apparent problem with her movement after that, the Serbian was forced to scrap for points in the fierce heat as Goerges kept her challenge going almost to the end. Jankovic lacked real consistency against the 20-year-old German whose first appearance in The Championships a year ago was marked by victory over the 24th seed Katarina Srebotnik of Slovenia in three hours and 41 minutes, the second longest women’s singles match in Wimbledon’s history. Goerges was not going to create another upset today but she certainly tried, so much so that she was 5-2 ahead in the second set. What let Goerges down was a high unforced error count, almost twice as many as Jankovic, and in the end she had to pay for that. Jankovic, in her sixth Wimbledon, has been to the last 16 for the past three years in succession. She reached her first Grand Slam final last year at the US Open and ended the year at No. 1. Goerges almost finished the year inside the top 100 last year so she bought plenty of ambition to the court today and demonstrated it throughout the match to make Jankovic suffer. She started impressively with two service winners and an ace in her first service game. Jankovic then held serve and continued to build on that to lead 5-1. But she lost three games in succession as Goerges raised her game. A forehand winner from the sideline into an unprotected court to win the eighth game was an indication of what Goerges was capable of achieving. The German had her best chance when she held three break points in the 10th game but Jankovic ran astutely and produced five service winners to claim the set in 40 minutes. Jankovic started the second set with a break of serve but lost her own in the next game. Goerges was in stronger form as the set moved on and was well in the reckoning, with a lead of 5-2. But Jankovic broke back in the ninth game and knew that her chance was approaching. In the tiebreak Jankovic at last fully justified her ranking. She swept through without losing a point and a service winner saw her claim victory.