LONDON: Former champion Rafael Nadal survived an early scare to kick off his bid for a third Wimbledon title with a 7-6 (7/0), 6-2, 6-3 victory over Brazil’s Thomaz Bellucci in the first round on Tuesday.
Nadal appeared to be suffering a hangover from his seventh French Open triumph two weeks ago as he allowed world number 80 Bellucci to race into a 4-0 lead in the first set.
But the second seeded Spaniard quickly regained his composure to canter through to the second round.
Winning the opening set in a tie-break seemed to break Bellucci’s resolve and, with normal service restored, Nadal powered through the second set in typically aggressive fashion.
He has reached the final on his last five appearances at the All England Club and there was an inevitability about the way he battered his fellow left-hander into submission.
Bellucci stuck with him until midway through the third set when a booming Nadal forehand secured a break for a 4-2 lead and the Spaniard was soon serving out the win.
Serena safely through
Four-time champion Serena Williams made an excellent start to her Wimbedon attempt, coming through an athletic first-round match against Czech Barbora Zahlavova Strycova that was tougher than the 6-2 6-4 scoreline would suggest.
The Czech, ranked 62nd in the world, was a dogged, opponent for the sixth seed on Court Two, chasing down every ball.
However, she found Serena’s powerful first serve tough to handle, staggering backwards like a punch-drunk boxer when the ball thundered towards her.
Kvitova’s shaky start
Whether it was the swathes of empty seats to greet her arrival or her sluggish movement and frequently misdirected groundstrokes, there was little in Petra Kvitova’s first round victory to suggest she was the defending Wimbledon champion.
The Czech showed little superstar quality as she nervously moved into the second round with a 6-4 6-4 win over Uzbekistan’s Akgul Amanmuradova.
It ended happily with the Czech saluting Centre Court with a smile and a wave, but it began in a flurry of unforced errors.
“I was nervous,” she said during a rather swift press conference that extended to just three questions.
Her movement was poor and the mistakes were multiplying, but her superior power meant an upset never felt likely providing she could find her range.
At 4-1 down in the first set she finally started to put it all together and she won five games in a row to win the opening set and the second was easier.
Jankovic out
Late last night came news of a big upset as 18th seed Jelena Jankovic was beaten by Kim Clijsters.
Clijsters has made it known that this will be her final Wimbledon event before she retires at the end of the year, and she put on a terrific performance to win in straight sets, 6-2 6-4.
There was a bigger upset later as Daniela Hantuchova was knocked out by young American Jamie Hampton, who until last week, had never hit tennis balls on a grass court.
The 22-year-old Hampton pulled off the biggest victory of her career, beating 27th-seeded Hantuchova of Slovakia 6-4, 7-6 (7/1) in the first round.
Among the men, Tomas Berdych, a former finalist here, was defeated by Ernests Gulbis late on Monday in three tie-break sets.
Tuesday saw fifth seeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga get past former champion and wildcard Lleyton Hewitt in straight sets, 6-3 6-4 6-4. (Agencies)