LONDON: Novak Djokovic helped dry the grass on Wimbledon's Centre Court with his towel before picking up where he had left off to beat Argentina's Pedro Cachin 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) in his opening match on Monday. The Serbian second seed was broken in the third game when he double-faulted but hit back immediately to level at 2-2. Djokovic, chasing a record-equalling eighth Wimbledon men's singles title, broke again in the eighth game before serving out for the set.
The covers were rushed on as soon as the defending champion had wrapped up the set, with rain falling in southwest London. The roof was closed but there was a lengthy delay featuring multiple inspections by officials and the players. Djokovic, who was clearly unhappy with the slipperiness of the surface, at one stage emerged with a towel, which he used to rub the surface of the court to laughter from the crowd. Members of the ground staff then used hand-held machines to try to dry the surface in farcical scenes on the world-famous court.
The match eventually resumed after a delay of almost 90 minutes, with the Centre Court roof reopened. Djokovic, seeking to match Margaret Court's all-time record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles, was unfazed by the delay, breaking in the first game of the second set to establish an iron grip on the match, repeating the feat to seal the set. Cachin, ranked 68th, dug deep in the third set, with neither player able to force a break in the early evening sunshine. Djokovic was immediately on top in the tie-break, surging into a 6-2 lead and he wrapped up the match when Cachin netted.
The 36-year-old Serbian is chasing the first calendar Grand Slam in men's tennis since 1969 after winning the Australian Open and French Open this year. Swiatek beats Zhu Lin In another development, World number one Iga Swiatek racked up the first five games on her way to sweeping past China's Zhu Lin to reach the Wimbledon second round on Monday. Reigning US Open and French Open champion Swiatek came through 6-1, 6-3 against her 34th-ranked opponent.
Top seed Swiatek, who has yet to progress beyond the fourth round at the All England Club, will face either Martina Trevisan of Italy or Spain's Sara Sorribes Tormo for a place in the last 32. "I feel confident and did a good job of adjusting to grass," said the 22-year-old after an 81-minute win that was completed under the roof of Court One as heavy rain disrupted play on the outside courts. "After winning Roland Garros last year, I felt overwhelmed but this year I took the time to appreciate it and then went back to work."- AFP