Novak Djokovic began his defense of the Wimbledon title with a straight set victory (6-4, 6-4, 6-4) over Philipp Kohlschreiber on Monday. But, I mean, I got this question already two times in the last couple days. Clearly, the break was restorative, so seamlessly did Djokovic slip back into the guise of world No 1 with this dominant victory.
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Scoreboard pressure – and the Djokovic return game – conspired to crack Kohlschreiber.
For Novak Djokovic, the satisfaction of a proficient first-round win was soured last night as the defending Wimbledon champion faced uncomfortable accusations that he was using illegal hand signals to solicit help from his coaching team. This is what it takes. So I said, “Be my guest, stay around, if you want”. Wimbledon’s official bird-scarer usually keeps the pigeon population away, but perhaps smaller species – this was either a sparrow, a wagtail or a blue tit, nobody was quite sure which – are beneath his dignity.
“It’s not of my concern, honestly”. It’s just the way I am.
“It’s probably been the best preparation I’ve ever had for Wimbledon because we have a week more on the grass”, Federer told reporters about the extended three-week grass-court swing ahead of Wimbledon.
Jonas Bjorkman is the latest addition to Murray’s coaching staff but Henman reckons it is Amelie Mauresmo, the former Wimbledon ladies’ champion and the Scot’s coach for the past year, who merits the most praise.
He had a point.
But the champion is wary of the potential pitfalls as he opens play on Centre Court at 1200GMT on a day when temperatures are expected to nudge the 30-degree mark.
To add to his weight in the balance, he had not lost to a player ranked as low as today’s opponent since he was defeated by Michael Llodra at the 2010 Paris Masters 1000.
Novak Djokovic (R) of Serbia talks with his German coach Boris Becker (L) during a training session for the All England Lawn Tennis Championships Grand Slam tournament in Wimbledon, London, Britain, 27 June 2015. Kohlschreiber was doing his best just to hang on while Djokovic always had another gear if he needed it.
There was little to choose between them in the opening set. Djokovic was a break to the good and was then broken back in the first set and again in the third set. “I made the crucial breaks at 5-4 in all three sets, so hopefully it can stay that way for me”.
This will be the seventh time these two have played, and Djokovic has won five of those meetings.
Kvitova won 28 of 29 points on serve, with the only blemish coming when she double-faulted on the first point of the final game, hitting a 93 miles per hour (150 kph) second serve just wide. “I missed quite a good opportunity pretty close”. I think the sport needs characters. “I’m just trying to figure out what you want to achieve with this story”. “I thought I started the match really well, breaking Philipp, losing the serve right away”, Djokovic continued.
He will now face Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen for a place in the last 32.
Williams, who played the opening match on Court 1, is seeking to become the first player since Steffi Graf in 1988 to complete a calendar-year Grand Slam, a sweep of all four major titles in the same season.
Hewitt exited No. 2 Court to a standing ovation from fans and Nieminen after his defeat.
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The 37th-ranked American knocked off a seeded player, too, easily eliminating No. 27 Barbora Strycova of the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-2 in a first-round match moved to Centre Court. He will next meet Santiago Giraldo, who beat Joao Souza, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2.
