london: Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz blew hot and cold on a blazing Monday at Wimbledon but the Spaniard survived a massive scare to beat dangerous Italian Fabio Fognini 7-5 6-7(5) 7-5 2-6 6-1 and reach the second round.
Alcaraz, bidding to become only the fifth man since tennis turned professional in 1968 to win three consecutive Wimbledon titles, arrived at the All England Club on an 18-match winning streak but the second seed looked out of sorts at times.
Daniil Medvedev found the roasting conditions and a French opponent who had not won a match on grass for three years too hot to handle on Monday as the ninth seed suffered a 7-6(2) 3-6 7-6(3) 6-2 loss to Benjamin Bonzi in the first round.
The Russian, who reached the semifinals at the All England Club for the last two years, got all hot and bothered as Bonzi brought out what he described as his “A-game” to dispatch the 2021 U.S. Open champion on Court Two, which felt like an oven throughout the three-hour match.
With Medvedev desperate to preserve his 100% record of reaching at least the second round at Wimbledon, he took out his frustrations on his racquet, smashing it to the ground after Bonzi had got the better of him yet again in the third set.
But there was no respite for the former world No. 1. “I was surprised by his level... there was not much I could do better,” Medvedev told reporters.
While spectators took shade under umbrellas, large-brimmed hats, newspapers and any other makeshift item they could grab to block out the burning sun, the only respite the players got was a 10-minute break at the end of the third set with Wimbledon’s heat rule coming into force as the temperature soared above 32 degrees Celsius.
In other results, Stefanos Tsitsipas retired due to a back issue after losing the first two two sets to France’s Valentin Royer. World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka overcame Canadian Carson Branstine 6-1 7-5. Two-time Wimbledon runner-up Ons Jabeur retired because of difficulty breathing.