Wimbledon 2021 Day 2: World No.1 Barty survives scare, through eventually

WELCOME TO DAY 2: Wimbledon, the only grass-court Grand Slam of the year returned after two years on Monday with home favourite Andy Murray making a winning comeback, while third-seed Stefanos Tsistsipas crashing out in the first round to Francis Tiafoe. The start of the 134th edition of the tournament, the 127th staging of the Ladies’ Singles Championship event, also saw two-time Wimbledon champion getting eliminated by American Sloane Stephens. Let’s have a look at the results from Day 2.

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1) Pliskova wins

Former world number one Karolina Pliskova began her quest for a maiden Grand Slam title with a 7-5 6-4 victory over Slovenia’s Tamara Zidansek.

2) Ons Jabeur beats Peterson

Czech eighth Pliskova seed was joined in the second round by Ons Jabeur, who beat Rebecca Peterson 6-2 6-1.

3) Sakkari through in style

Greece’s Maria Sakkari, returning to action for the first time since her French Open semi-final defeat, powered past Aranxta Rus of the Netherlands 6-1 6-1 in 49 minutes.

4) Venus Williams wins

Five-times champion Venus Williams, playing as a wildcard in her 23rd Wimbledon, showed vintage form to beat Romania’s Mihaela Buzarnescu 7-5 4-6 6-3 and reach the second round on Tuesday.

5) Evans, Fognini through

Feliciano López’s 78th Grand Slam ended when he lost to No. 22 Daniel Evans of Britain, 7-6 (4), 6-2, 7-5. No. 26 Fabio Fognini beat Albert Ramos-Viñolas 7-6 (4), 6-2, 6-4.

6) Riske crashes out

Alison Riske of the United States lost in the first round at Wimbledon to Tereza Martincová 6-2, 4-6, 6-1. The 28th-seeded Riske committed 42 unforced errors.

7) De Minaur sent packing

American Sebastian Korda defeated Eastbourne champion Alex De Minaur 6-3 6-4 6-7(5) 7-6(5) before rain stopped play on all the outside courts. Sebastian Korda is ranked a career-high 50th, and added momentum to his breakout year by beating a top 20 player at a Grand Slam for the first time.

8) Barty survives scare

World number one Ash Barty overcame a mid-match blip to beat Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro 6-1 6-7(1) 6-1 on Centre Court and advance to the second round. Suarez Navarro, who returned to competitive tennis at the French Open after overcoming cancer, is set to retire after the Olympics.

9) Zverev wins

Alexander Zverev had 20 aces and only 18 unforced errors as he swept qualifier Tallon Griekspoor in the first round at Wimbledon, 6-3, 6-4, 6-1. The result was a big improvement for Zverev after losing to a qualifier at Wimbledon in 2018 and 2019.

(more results awaited)