Day 1 of the men’s singles at Wimbledon produced much entertaining tennis for fans to enjoy. Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz and this year’s Australian Open winner Jannik Sinner were among the players to take to the court. No. 31 seed Mariano Navone was one of the players to be knocked out, but which other three seeds exited the tournament? This article reflects on who looked good, which players struggled and names the epic five-set battle that was the best match of the day.
Wimbledon Men’s Day 1 Recap
Who Looked Good
Carlos Alcaraz began his title defense with a 7-6 7-5 6-2 triumph against the qualifier Mark Lajal. The Spaniard was made to work very hard by his Estonian opponent in the opening two sets, which were both very entertaining to watch. This was an ideal first test for Alcaraz, as he seeks to find his best level for future rounds.
2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev produced an even more dominant performance on Day 1 at Wimbledon. He swept aside Aleksandar Kovacevic 6-3 6-4 6-2 on Court 1. Last year’s semifinalist was not broken throughout the contest, saving all three break points he faced.
Jannik Sinner also got off to a positive start at SW19. He needed four sets to defeat Yannick Hanfmann 6-3 6-4 3-6 6-3. This was a high-quality affair from start to finish. Hanfmann played excellently throughout, but crucially, Sinner saved nine of the 11 break points that he faced. This was a great test that could be helpful to the Italian in later rounds.
2021 Wimbledon runner-up Matteo Berrettini reminded fans of his grass-court credentials on Day 1. The Italian overcame the dangerous Marton Fucsovics 7-6 6-2 3-6 6-1. He was only broken once throughout the contest, demonstrating that he has one of the best serves in the game when it is firing.
Gael Monfils produced a terrific display to knock out the 22nd seed Adrian Mannarino, who has performed strongly at Wimbledon in the past. The final score was 6-4 3-6 7-5 6-4. Monfils has spoken in the past about not liking grass, but the 37-year-old looked more than comfortable on it during this contest.
Who Looked Bad
19th seed Nicolas Jarry did not reach his best level on Day 1 of Wimbledon. Admittedly, he did have a tough draw against the 2021 semifinalist Denis Shapovalov. However, the Chilean struggled throughout his 1-6 5-7 4-6 defeat. He was looser than normal on serve and only created two break points throughout the match.
Sebastian Baez was another seeded player to be knocked out in straight sets. The Argentine fell 2-6 3-6 4-6 to Brandon Nakashima. It is true that Baez’s weakest surface is grass. Nonetheless, he still could have exited in a less tame manner than what the fans on Court 17 witnessed.
Match of the Day
There were several worthy contenders for match of the day. Eight of the contests on Day 1 went to a fifth set, with three of these being decided in a ten-point tiebreak. Frances Tiafoe, Jordan Thompson, Daniel Altmaier, Ugo Humbert and Alexander Bublik managed to prevail in the fifth set without needing a tiebreak. Aleksandar Vukic and Arthur Cazaux were two of the players who did triumph in a ten-point tiebreak.
Overall, Lloyd Harris’ tussle with the 19-year-old Alex Michelsen was the best match on Day 1 of Wimbledon. One break of serve in the sixth game was enough for Michelsen to take the opening set 6-3. Harris then paid the price for a slow start to the following set. He was broken in the first game and never recovered, allowing Michelsen to go up by two sets to love.
Harris got his first break of the match in the third set, before being swiftly broken back by the American in the sixth game. The set was decided by a tiebreak after no further breaks. It was Harris who took it 7-5 to take the match into a fourth set. Michelsen was clearly rattled by that setback, losing the first four games of the next set. The South African ended up taking it 6-2.
After ten consecutive holds of serve, it looked like Harris had sealed victory when he broke to go 6-5 up, but he could not close it out, and a ten-point tiebreak was needed to decide the contest. The American then held a match point at 9-8 up, but he could not take it. Instead, Harris reeled off three straight points to triumph 3-6 4-6 7-6 6-2 7-6.
What an outrageous way to seal an epic Wimbledon victory 🤯
This incredible match point effort from Lloyd Harris is the Play of the Day, presented by @Barclays #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/FwfqOMatc6
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 1, 2024
Main Photo Credit: Peter van den Berg – USA TODAY Sports
