Wimbledon: Stan Wawrinka rolls out on the London grass

Three sets, 1h49 of play, and a convincing performance: Stan Wawrinka’s 18th Wimbledon could hardly have started better than on Monday on Court No. 2 at Church Road. Facing British guest Charles Broom (ATP 246), the Vaudois won 6-3 7-5 6-4.

Solid on his serve, which is crucial on grass perhaps even more than on other surfaces, “Stan The Man” took advantage of a temporary drop in form from Broom at 3-2 – three unforced errors on his forehand and a nasty volley – to win the first set in 23 minutes.

Suddenly more enterprising, the Briton quickly led 3-0 then 5-2 in the 2nd. But Wawrinka saved four balls in the second round and turned the situation around with a lot of forehand shots against a suddenly fragile Broom, particularly on the volley at the net.

After winning five games in a row, the three-time Grand Slam winner added three more at the start of a third set that he mastered from start to finish. “Stanimal” will challenge a Frenchman, Adrian Mannarino (24th) or Gaël Monfils (33rd), on Wednesday during his second round meeting.

“It wasn’t easy in the 2nd set. You were down 2-5 and saved several set points. Did the experience help you?” asked the interviewer. “I hope. At least it’s useful for me to be old,” he replied, visibly very inspired.

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