Iga Swiatek reaches round two after downing Wimbledon debutant

London — Iga Swiatek is still a long way from mastering the art of grass court tennis but on Tuesday the Pole took what she hopes will end up being a successful run at Wimbledon as she beat Russia’s Polina Kudermetova 7-5 6-1 in the first round.

Facing a Wimbledon debutant, the five-time Grand Slam champion might have hoped for an easy ride as no doubt she would have liked to escape the court 2 furnace as quickly as possible with the temperature soaring above 33°C.

Despite being a grass court novice, Kudermetova refused to be overawed by the occasion, or her opponent, as she went toe-to-toe from the baseline with Swiatek for 45 minutes.

It was not the kind of first-round trial Swiatek would have wanted as she bids to improve her rather mediocre record at the All England Club, which remains the only major where she has not contested at least a semifinal.

In fact, it was not until the penultimate point of the opening set that Swiatek earned her first break point, which the eighth seed duly converted when Kudermetova netted a backhand to surrender the set.

That blow effectively snuffed out the 22-year-old Russian’s hopes of winning a match at a Grand Slam for the first time as her baseline tactics fell apart in the second.

While Kudermetova had kept Swiatek second-guessing her game plan for the duration of the 45-minute opening set, the former world No 1 raced through the second in only 24 minutes, securing the win with a sizzling backhand winner.

“I’m glad my game clicked in the second set and am glad some fans came to see us today as it’s so hot,” Swiatek told the crowd after setting up a second round meeting with American Caty McNally.

Defending champion Barbora Krejcikova survived a stiff examination from promising 20-year-old Filipina Alexandra Eala before finding her groove to triumph 3-6 6-2 6-1 on her return to Centre Court.

Czech Krejcikova, a shock winner as 31st seed last year and seeded 17th this time, came into the tournament short on form after a succession of injuries and initially had no answer to the confident, free-swinging Eala, who is the first woman from the Philippines to play at Wimbledon.

Eala turned 20 in May and was making her first Wimbledon appearance but she immediately looked at home in the daunting surroundings of the sport’s most iconic court.

Krejcikova forced the first break in the third game but Eala hit straight back, swinging her lefty forehand freely and throwing in a beautifully disguised drop shot.

She then upped the ante, holding confidently and breaking again as her two-fisted backhand came to the fore and, from 2-1 down with a break against, Eala reeled off four games in a row.

Krejcikova struggled to find any consistency and was not helped by five first-set double faults and very cautious shot choices.

The champion just about held serve after six deuces but Eala was not to be denied and served out to take the first set.

Krejcikova looked as if she had had a physical and mental reboot for the second set where she showed much more energy and found her serving range.

With Eala also starting to lose her radar and with her lightweight serve being punished, the champion swept to a 5-0 lead and took the set 6-2.

Krejcikova grabbed an early break in the third with pounding returns and though Eala had an immediate breakback opportunity, she could not take it and quickly trailed 3-0.

It was relatively straightforward from then, as a tired-looking Eala’s error-count rose and Krejcikova raced home in ever more confident style.

Krejcikova was quick to credit her opponent.

“I mean, what the hell she played in the first set?” she said. “She was smashing the ball and cleaning the lines, so wow, wow. She’s going to be really good in a couple of years.”

Fresh off a title in Bad Homburg and tipped for a deep run at Wimbledon, world No 3 Jessica Pegula crashed out in the first round, stunned 6-2 6-3 by unheralded Italian Elisabetta Cocciaretto.

It was a meek surrender from Pegula, who looked subdued from the start on court 2. She landed only half her first serves, struck a mere five winners and sprayed 24 unforced errors in a display more tentative than tenacious.

Cocciaretto, meanwhile, kept her composure and her smile.

The world No 116 was rock-solid throughout, breaking the American four times and exacting revenge for her straight-sets defeat at Wimbledon two years ago.

It marked only the second top-10 win of Cocciaretto’s career, but was thoroughly deserved.

“Playing on this court is a dream for me,” she said. 

Reuters