Novak Djokovic launched his bid for an eighth Wimbledon title on Monday with a 40th successive win on Centre Court.
The 36-year-old Djokovic, who has won the past four titles at the All England Club, defeated 68th-ranked Pedro Cachin of Argentina, 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) on the tournament’s showpiece court, where he has not lost since 2013.
Novak Djokovic even found time to help ground staff dry out the world’s most famous lawn after the surface became too slippery following a downpour.
The roof was closed but play did not resume for about 90 minutes, much to the frustration of the fans.
“When I come out, I usually come out with racquets, not towels,” said Djokovic, who described the court as “the holy grail, the temple of tennis”.
He added: “The conditions were not great under the roof, it was still slippery. I think it was definitely frustrating for the crowd waiting for us.”
The Serbian, bidding to match Roger Federer’s men’s record of eight Wimbledon titles, goes on to face Australia’s Jordan Thompson for a place in the third round.
World number two Novak Djokovic has already pocketed the Australian Open and French Open this year.
Winning a men’s-record 23rd major in Paris put him just one behind Margaret Court’s all-time singles mark of 24.
He is also halfway to pulling off the first calendar Grand Slam since Rod Laver in 1969.
In Wimbledon’s biggest shock of the day, seventh-ranked Gauff slumped to a 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 defeat to fellow American Sofia Kenin, who came through qualifying.
Kenin, now ranked 128th in the world, was Australian Open champion and French Open runner-up in 2020 before injury and loss of form saw her career slip into a downward spiral.
“This means a lot — I had to go through qualies (qualification),” she said. “I battled out there. I am super proud of myself.
An emotional Gauff admitted she “had a lot to work on”.
There was no fairytale for five-time champion Venus Williams, the 43-year-old American who made her debut at the tournament in 1997.
Williams, playing the singles event for the 24th time, was defeated 6-4, 6-3 by fellow wild card Elina Svitolina of Ukraine, a semi-finalist in 2019.
Williams took a nasty tumble early in the first set on Centre Court, hurting her right knee, which was already heavily strapped.
She required two visits by the trainer before her challenge fizzled out under the weight of 33 unforced errors.
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