Sir Andy Murray defended in his Wimbledon opener on Monday with an under-arms serve, saying it was a legitimate way to make opponents think twice before standing too deep to serve back.
The Scotsman overcame a hiccup in the opening set to maintain his 100% first-round record, beating James Duckworth 4-6 6-3 6-2 6-4 under the spotlight in a match that saw the roof closed for the latter set.
The two-time Wimbledon champion used the shot in the third set of his win at Center Court and won the point despite the Australian scramble to get the ball back over the net.
“He changed his return position, that’s why I did it,” Murray told reporters.
“He struggled a bit on the first serve return, so he probably stepped back two meters. As soon as I saw him step further back, I threw in the forearm serve.”
Murray suggested that the under-the-arms serve could grow in popularity as players move further behind the baseline to increase their chances of making decent returns on big serves.
“Personally, I have no problem with players using it. I’ve never had it,” he added.
“Certainly more and more players have started to return from further, further behind the baseline to give themselves an advantage to return.
“The service to the poor is a way of saying, ‘If you step back there, I might throw that in’.”
Murray said he never took the tactic, which has become more associated with Australian maverick Nick Kyrgios in recent years, as a sign of disrespect for his opponent.
‘I never understood that. It is a legitimate way of serving,” he said. “I would never use an underarm service if someone were on the baseline because I think it’s a stupid idea because they’re going to track it down and it’s easy to get.
“If they’re four or five meters behind the baseline, why not do that to bring them forward if they don’t like getting back there? Tactically it’s a smart move.”
Raducanu, Djokovic by
British hope Emma Raducanu gave local fans reason to cheer after winning her first round match at Center Court on Monday.
The US Open champion, Raducanu, played on the sacred turf for the first time in the court’s centenary, winning 6-4 6-4 against in-form Belgian Alison van Uytvanck, who had played two games before Wimbledon. grass track events.
Defending champion Novak Djokovic got rid of some rust and defeated South Korea’s Kwon Soon-woo 6-3 3-6 6-3 6-4 on Center Court for his 80th Wimbledon match win, while our third seed Ons Jabeur passed Mirjam Bjorklund 6 drove -1 6-3.
The biggest disappointment of the first day came courtesy of Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokinal, who defeated last year’s seventh seed and semi-finalist Hubert Hurkacz 7-6(4) 6-4 5-7 2-6 7-6 (8).
Hurkacz had underlined his Wimbledon credentials when he defeated world number one Daniil Medvedev in the final in Halle, but despite fighting back from two sets behind, it was Davidovich Fokina who triumphed in a roller coaster race.
Carlos Alcaraz, the youngest man in the draw, had a tough opening game against Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff, but the 19-year-old Spaniard produced some stunning shots that culminated in a 4-6 7-5 4-6 7 – 6(3) 6-4 win.
Serena is back
Almost a year since Serena Williams last played a singles in the Tour, the tennis star returns to Center Court, where her awe-inspiring career almost ended in tears.
On the hunt for a record-equivalent 24th Grand Slam singles title, sixth seed Williams stumbled out of her first round with an injury last year and the sport suddenly had a void to fill as she took a year off to “repair physically and mentally.” to cure”.
Now, three months before her 41st birthday, Williams is at 1,204 in the world rankings and the American needed a wild card to play at Wimbledon, where she won the title seven times.
She has just two Eastbourne doubles matches to her name and will advance to the third major of the year where she takes on France’s Harmony Tan on Tuesday.