The World number two, Daniil Medvedev overcame a tricky first-round encounter as he opened his Wimbledon account with a 6-4, 6-1, 4-6, 7-6(3) win over Jan-Lennard Struff on Tuesday.
The second-seeded Russian breezed through the first two sets before Struff who knocked him out on the grass of Halle a couple of weeks ago in the first round began to cause damage as German took the third set. In the fourth set, just two mini-breaks made the difference in the tie-break, and both went Medvedev's way as he sealed the victory with a lob winner after two hours and 35 minutes.
"I was a bit surprised that I managed to win the first two sets so easy," Wimbledon's official website quoted Medvedev in the post-match conference. "That's why Grand Slams are funny. I thought 'I got it, just stay focused' and he started showing some unbelievable tennis and the match turned around. There were so many opportunities for both of us. It wasn't over until the last point. It was a rollercoaster match.
"I am really happy that I managed to revenge Halle on this one. I want all matches to be like these first two sets, but on grass, you need to be ready. Before he broke me in the third set he did not really have opportunities, and then suddenly the match was absolutely different. Better than it's like the first two sets, but it's never going to be always that easy."
Medvedev has a shot at the No.1 spot here, either by winning the title or reaching the final when Novak Djokovic does not. If he manages it, he would be the first player outside the Big Four (Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Andy Murray) to reach the summit since Andy Roddick in November 2003.
Elsewhere on the centre court, Roger Federer survived a scare against Adrian Mannarino as the French tennis player was forced to retire at 6-4, 6-7(3), 3-6, 6-2 due to the injury he sustained during the fourth set.
Later in the day, the seven-time singles Wimbledon champion, Serena Williams was forced to retire as she sustained an injury during her first-round encounter against Aliaksandra Sasnovich of Belarus.
( With inputs from ANI )
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