Mother Nature made it a lengthy match but Novak Djokovic made quick work of his opponent as he began his title defense Monday at Wimbledon.
Djokovic earned a 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 (4) first-round win over Argentina’s Pedro Cachin in two hours and 12 minutes. But he was forced to wait out a 90-minute rain delay before advancing.
The second-seeded Serbian is vying for a fifth straight Wimbledon championship and eighth overall.
“It doesn’t get much better than Wimbledon, really, in terms of history and tradition,” said Djokovic afterward. “I’ve said it many times throughout my career. Coming to Wimbledon was always the dream, to win it. A childhood dream came true in 2011 and each year I come back I kind of relive those memories and just kind of connect with that young boy that was dreaming in Serbia.
“I try to not take any match, any minute that I spend on the court here for granted. I’m definitely blessed, so it’s a wonderful feeling to be here.”
The win marked Djokovic’s 29th straight on grass.
Djokovic next plays Australian Jordan Thompson, who needed 3 1/2 hours to rally and defeat Brandon Nakashima 2-6, 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-3.
Fourth-seeded Casper Ruud of Norway posted a 6-1, 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 win over Laurent Lokoli of France. Italy’s Jannik Sinner, the No. 8 seed, swept past Juan Manuel Cerundolo of Argentina 6-2, 6-2, 6-2.
No. 7 Andrey Rublev of Russia needed just 93 minutes to oust Aussie Max Purcell 6-3, 7-5, 6-4 in his return to Wimbledon. Rublev was among the Russian and Belarusian players who were banned from the 2022 tournament over the war in Ukraine.
“I am really happy to be back. You always want to win in straight sets, but it is never simple,” Rublev said. “To play here with full stadiums at 11 a.m., that is a special feeling.”
The highest-seeded player to fall on Day 1 was Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime, the No. 11 seed. Lucky loser Michael Mmoh, who entered the main draw after Serbia’s Filip Krajinovic dropped out, outlasted Auger-Aliassime 7-6 (4), 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4), 6-4.
No. 14 Lorenzo Musetti of Italy and No. 17 Hubert Hurkacz of Poland advanced with straight-set victories. No. 23 Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan rallied past Mackenzie McDonald 6-7 (3), 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, while Colombia’s Daniel Elahi Galan took down No. 24 Yoshihito Nishioka of Japan 6-4, 6-3, 6-3.
Other first-round winners included J.J. Wolf; Belgium’s David Goffin; France’s Corentin Moutet; Germany’s Maximilian Marterer and Oscar Otte; Chile’s Tomas Barrios Vera; Russia’s Aslan Karatsev; Liam Broady and Jan Choinski of Great Britain; Spain’s Jaume Munar; Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland; Diego Schwartzman of Argentina; Sweden’s Mikael Ymer; and Australia’s Aleksandar Vukic.
–Field Level Media
