For the last 50 weeks, Carlos Alcaraz knew the exact date and time he would walk back on Centre Court to open the defence of his Wimbledon title and the Spaniard kept his goosebumps in check on Monday 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.
"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.World No 1 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.
Sabalenka's withdrawal removed one mighty obstacle for second seed Coco Gauff who concluded Centre Court action on Monday with an impressive 6-1 6-2 defeat of fellow American Caroline Dolehide.Former world No 1 and four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka returned to Wimbledon after a five-year absence and came through a topsy-turvy clash against France's Diane Parry, winning 6-1 1-6 6-4.
Twice French Open runner-up Casper Ruud was another player delighted to be back on court after he was hit by a parasitic infection that kept him in bed for almost two weeks following his run to the Roland Garros semifinals last month.
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