LONDON: Germany’s Alexander Zverev fired 20 aces past Dutch qualifier Gijs Brouwer to move into the Wimbledon second round with a hard-earned 6-4, 7-6(4), 7-6(5) win on Thursday.
The 19th seed did not have an easy tournament start against the world number 153, whose own first serve percentage matched that of Zverev, and with the German getting just two break opportunities in total in the first two sets.
He next plays another lower-ranked player in Japan’s world number 116 Yosuke Watanuki with little time to rest as the schedule has been reworked following all the rain delays.
“He was a very tough opponent and the rain was a very tough opponent,” said Zverev, whose match was one of the last first- round clashes to finish. “I’m just happy to be back at Wimbledon.”
He missed the tournament last year following his ankle injury at the French Open.
“I missed it last year with a bad injury so just to be on this court I’m happy to be here with 10,000 people. I know Wimbledon is the most historic tennis tournament in the world and maybe the most historic sporting event in the world.
“I play again tomorrow and the day after, well if I win of course. It’s going to be a tough few days with back-to-back matches and it is never easy physically - I’m just happy to be playing tennis now,” Zverev said.
The 26-year-old snatched a break at 3-3 in the first set before serving it out and both players held serve until left-hander Brouwer carved out two set points at 6-5.
Zverev, a former world number two, saved them both to force a tiebreak, winning it with another booming ace.
Both players comfortably held serve in the third to take it to another tiebreak and Zverev fired down his 20th ace to seal victory on his third match point.
Stan Wawrinka rolled back the years as the 38-year-old Swiss proved the old adage that class is permanent and form temporary by knocking out seeded Argentine Tomas Etcheverryto reach the third round. His career may be in its twilight but Wawrinka proved a notch above a man 15 years his junior to claim a 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 victory on a sunny Court Three.
It was the first time Wawrinka has reached third round of a Grand Slam for three years and his reward is a box-office duel with defending champion Novak Djokovic, the man he famously made cry after beating him in the 2015 French Open final.
British wildcard Liam Broady claimed the biggest win of his career and the biggest shock of Wimbledon 2023 when he stunned Norwegian fourth seed Casper Ruud 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 in front of a delirious Centre Court crowd.
Broady belied his 142nd ranking against a player who has reached three of the last five Grand Slam finals but had struggled at Wimbledon in his three previous appearances.
Broady made the running to take the first set and though Ruud regrouped to take the next two, it never felt as if he was taking control and the Briton was the dominant force in the fourth to take it to a decider.
Former Wimbledon runner-up Matteo Berrettini surprised himself by beating fellow Italian Lorenzo Sonego 6-7(5), 6-3, 7-6(7), 6-3 to belatedly reach the second round. Berrettini, beaten by Novak Djokovic in the 2021 final, has struggled with an abdominal injury this season, and came into the grasscourt Grand Slam with modest expectations.
In other second round matches, 7th seed Andrey Rublev beat Aslan Karatsev 6-7, 6-3, 6-4, 7-5, Denis Shapovalov beat Grégoire Barrère 6-3, 6-4, 7-6, Quentin Halys beat Aleksandar Vukic 6-3, 6-1, 6-4, Hubert Hurkacz beat Jan Choinski 6-4, 6-4, 7-6, Maximilian Marterer beat Michael Mmoh 7-5, 7-6, 6-4, Lorenzo Musetti beat Jaume Munar 6-4, 6-3, 6-1, Alexander Bublik beat J.J.Wolf 6-3, 7-6, 6-0,
In women’s section, Former Wimbledon semi-finalist Elina Svitolina continued her fine run in Grand Slams following her maternity break as the Ukrainian wildcard downed 28th seed Elise Mertens 6-1, 1-6, 6-1 to move into the third round.
Svitolina, who returned to the tour in April following the birth of her daughter, made the French Open quarter-finals last month and was too good for five-times champion Venus Williams in her Wimbledon opener.
She will face American Sofia Kenin who beat China's Wang Xinyu 6-4, 6-3.
In other second round matches, Victoria Azarenka beat Nadia Podoroska 6-3, 6-0, Bianca Andreescu beat Anna Bondár 6-3, 3-6, 6-2, Markéta Vondroušová beat 12th seed Veronika Kudermetova 6-3, 6-3, Ana Bogdan beat Alycia Parks 1-6, 6-3, 6-2, Lesia Tsurenko beat Katerina Siniaková 6-4, 6-1, Sofia Kenin beat Wang Xinyu 6-4, 6-3, Sorana Cîrstea stunned Jelena Ostapenko 4-6, 7-6, 6-4, Marie Bouzková beat Anett Kontaveit 6-1, 6-2, Katie Boulter beat Viktoriya Tomova 6-0, 3-6, 6-3, Elisabetta Cocciaretto beat Rebeka Masarova 6-3, 6-1, 5th seed Caroline Garcia beat Leylah Annie Fernandez 3-6, 6-4, 7-6. Agencies
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