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Wimbledon 2024 Women’s Day 1
Wimbledon was hit by injury withdrawals from a pair of women’s Grand Slam champions on Monday’s opening day, with third seed Aryna Sabalenka and No. 16 Victoria Azarenka both pulling the plug.
The women from Belarus have each twice won Australian Open titles; both are suffering with shoulder injuries.
Sabalenka gave notice of her likely absence at the weekend, saying she looked 50-50 for her start; she cited the physical problem which has bothered her for several weeks.
Azaranka dropped her surprise notice in late afternoon before her first-round match and was replaced in the draw by Elsa Jacquemot of France.
Wild card Emma Raducanu pleased home fans with a 7-6 (0), 6-3 defeat of Renata Zarazua, a Mexican qualifier ranked 149, who replaced injured original opponent Ekaterina Alexandrova in the draw.
Raducanu, who missed Wimbledon a year ago as she recovered from wrist and knee surgery,
She said the quick-change of opponents was complex to deal with.
“I only found out this morning, we had been planning for the original opponent,” the winner said. “It took a bit of adjusting and finding my feet.
I watched the (Euro) football last night – winning ugly (by England) but it still counts.
Emma Raducanu training at Wimbledon in an England Football shirt
“I was nervous today, you could see it in my tennis. But you have to do what it takes to get over the line.”
Wrapping up victory proved to be a challenge, with Zarazua saving a match point in the penultimate game before Raducanu completed her job a game later on her second winning chance after nearly two hours on court.
Roland Garros finalist and seventh seed Jasmine Paolini got away to a winning start with her 7-5, 6-4 domination of Sara Sorribes Tormo.
The smiling Italian Paris runner-up finally won a first-round match here after losing her previous three. She also won a grass match for the first time last week in Eastbourne and eventually reached the semis.
“(Playing on grass) is a different tennis, but I’m enjoying,” she said.
“Today was a good match, but I have to raise up a little bit the level for the next match because it’s going to be tough.
“I’m just trying to play as better as possible. It’s not easy because it’s a completely different surface. We play just two, three weeks per year. So, yeah, but I try to adapt. So let’s see.”
Wild card Naomi Osaka, who last won a match here in 2018, stepped onto a Wimbledon court for the first time since 2019 and reached the second round 6-1, 1-6, 6-4 over France’s Diane Parry.
The 14th seed, Daria Kasatkina, followed up on her weekend Eastbourne title by crushing China’s hang Shuai with the loss of ust three games to reach the second round in 74 minutes.
Heather Watson took the first loss for the host country only a few hours into the start of the fortnight, going out to Belgian Greet Minnen 7-5, 6-4.
New Zealand qualifier Lulu Sun, playing in her first Grand Slam main draw, stunned Australian Open finalist Zheng Quinwen 4-6, 6-2, 6-4.
Main photo:-Emma Raducanu celebrates as she wins first round match – by Roger Parker International Sports Fotos Ltd
Casper Ruud fell victim to the same spoiler who knocked him out a year ago as the two-time winner of the Gstaad Swiss Open lost a lead to take a quarter-final loss to Juan Manuel Cerendolo 3-6, 7-5, 6-2 on Friday.
The comeback win from a set and 4-2 down by the Argentine duplicated a win over Ruud here a year ago.
Norway’s Ruud won the alpine title here in 2021 and 2022, but could not hold onto his margin as his lefty opponent reversed the momentum to reach his second semi-final of the season.
Ruud looked like finding his element on the clay this week in the alpine village after losing in the Wimbledon first round nealry a month ago.
But Cerundolo put paid to that scenario. The South American was not the day’s only spoiler, with with top seeded holder Alexander Bublik knocked out 6-4 (7), 4-6, 7-6 (5) in a weather-delayed second-round match to France’s Quentin Halys.
Monaco third seed Valentin Vacherot double-faulted on match point in a loss to Belgium’s Raphael Collignon 7-6 (7), 4-6, 7-5.
In the first set, ATP No. 13 Ruud saved three break points against No. 45 Cerundolo to hold 3-2 and then broke the South American a game later through a return winner on his way to claiming the opening set.
The Scandinavian went up a break in the fifth game of the second set, but lost the edge as he lost his own serve as the break-back levelled the set at 4-all as the momentum shift took hold.
Ruud’s power faded as his 29 winners over the first two sets faded to four in the definitive third.
Cerundolo advanced on his first match point; he has now come from a set down in three matches this week and stands 14-3 in deciding sets this season.
“I used all my energy, I tried to play my best,” the winner said. “I was able to come back in the second set and I started playing really well.”
Two-time champion Casper Ruud had to work for more than two and a half hours to overcome Jaime Faria, the Portuguese who put out Stan Wawrinka in the first round at the Gstaad Swiss Open on Thursday.
Faria was riding the momentum from Tuesday’s defeat of three-time Grand Slam winner Stan Wawrinka, set to retire this season and beaten in an opening match at his home venue.
Faria had his eye on a second upset as he faced Ruud, who lifted the trophy at this elite alpine village in 2021 and 2022.
Ruud ahd to dodge a bullet and mount a comeback to get through the second-round test against the Portuguese.
After dropping the opening set in a tiebreaker, Ruud played patiently as Faria saved five break points in the sixth game of the second set before failing on the sixth.
Ruud then pulled away for a 6-7 (1), 6-4, 6-2 victory, his first since Roland Garros.
“Sometimes it is hard to say when you get a good feeling and you start to win some games in a row,” the winner said.
“You try from the first game to the last, but suddenly something clicked in the middle of the second for me, luckily.”
He added: “I had to really fight hard and if I played one bad game in the second and he serves well, it could be over and it would be time to go home. But luckily I can extend the stay.”
The Scandinavian could join Spaniards Sergi Bruguera and Alex Corretja as three-time winners in the Alps, with Ruud now standing 10-1 here over his career.
Stefanost Tsitsipas said he slept soundly prior to finishing off a darkness-interrupted match on Thursday as he eliminated local Jerome Kym at the Gstaad Swiss Open.
The Greek who once cracked third in the world and the 186th-ranked Swiss returned to the clay after darkness on Wednesday night left them hanging at 5-all in the third set.
Tsitsipas revved up his game from the resumption to emerge into the quarter-finals 6-4, 6-7 (2), 7-6 (5).
The second seed now standing 85th in the world after several poor seasons and a split with his father as his coach, said getting his rest was not a problem after the interruption.
“It was strange going to bed and not being finished. I visualised what I wanted to do, my shot patterns.
“It worked out pretty well.
“I had a good night’s sleep, I was not too stressed and I recovered to get ready for the continuation.”
After saving break points in the first game on Thursday, Tsitsipas triumphed in the final-set tiebreaker
“I’m relieved I was able to save a couple of break points.. I put my game together and made it )victory) happen again.”
The Greek now faces off against Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech for a semi-final spot.
“I’m expecting a lot of big serves, the altitude (1050m) helps. I’ll try to build consistency around my own serve.”
History repeats for Argentine spoiler in Gstaad
Ruud survives a scare to secure Gstaad quarters
Tsitsipas finishes off Kym after overnight pause
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