Daniil Medvedev, 5th in the world and semi-finalist last year, quietly made his debut at Wimbledon where he dismissed the American Aleksandar Kovacevic (88) 6-3 6-4 6-2. For his part, Carlos Alcaraz, defending champion, got the better of Estonian Mark Lajal (269) whom he ended up dismissing 7-6 (7-3) 7-5 6-2 in 2h22.
“The first Grand Slam matches are never easy and there were moments more tense than the score suggests. So I’m happy with my level of play“, commented the Russian. In the next round, he will face a Frenchman: Alexandre Müller (102) or Hugo Gaston (71).
Against Kovacevic, Medvedev was particularly imperial on his serve. The 25-year-old American, who was playing his first Wimbledon, saved two match points but lost on an ace, the 16th of the match.
Alcaraz also qualified
In the next round, the Spaniard, who is aiming for a rare Roland-Garros – Wimbledon double, will face the Australian Aleksandar Vukic (69) or the Austrian Sebastian Ofner (45th).
Beaten in the second round at Queen’s, which he won last year, Alcaraz did not appear dominant for his first match on Center Court this year, against an opponent who had never set foot on a competitive grass court before this summer, where he lost in the second round of qualifying at the Surbiton Challengers and then Nottingham, before making it through all three qualifying rounds at Wimbledon.
But after two very close sets, the Estonian ended up losing, under the eyes of David Beckham in the stands.
afp/efas
