The Latest: Djokovic calls Wimbledon ‘cradle of our sport’
Jun 29, 2015, 7:42 AM
Novak Djokovic of Serbia celebrates defeating Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany in their men's singles first round match at the All England Lawn Tennis Championships in Wimbledon, London, Monday June 29, 2015. Djokovic won the match 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
(AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
LONDON (AP) — The Latest from Wimbledon (all times local):
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3:35 p.m.
Just after he won his opening match at Wimbledon, Novak Djokovic summed up what the All England Club means to him.
“This is the cradle of our sport, Centre Court,” Djokovic said, “it doesn’t get any better than Wimbledon.”
Djokovic beat Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany in straight sets on the opening day of the tournament, playing the first match in the main stadium.
Last year, Djokovic won his second Wimbledon title on the same Centre Court, beating seven-time champion Roger Federer in straight sets.
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3:25 p.m.
John Isner’s serve is in fine form to start Wimbledon, where his career winning percentage is now back to .500.
The 17th-seeded American — best known for winning the longest match in tennis history at the All England Club in 2010 — hit 38 aces in a 7-6 (5), 6-4, 6-4 victory over 91st-ranked Go Soeda of Japan in the first round Monday.
Isner collected more than half of his points, 58 of 96, via unreturned serves.
The match only took 1 hour, 45 minutes — a sprint for Isner, who famously edged Nicolas Mahut 70-68 in the fifth set of a first-rounder five years ago that lasted more than 11 hours spread over three days.
Isner never has been past the third round at Wimbledon in six previous trips and is now 6-6 at the grass-court Grand Slam tournament.
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3:15 p.m.
Wimbledon’s defending champion is through to the second round.
Novak Djokovic beat Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 Monday in the first round, playing the first match of the tournament on Centre Court.
Djokovic, who won the Australian Open this year and then lost in the French Open final, is the man to beat at the All England Club again this year. The top-seeded Serb won his second Wimbledon title last year, and came into this year’s tournament with a 41-3 record.
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2:35 p.m.
Serena Williams was far from dominant at the start, but more than good enough at the end.
The top-seeded American opened her quest for a true Grand Slam with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Margarita Gasparyan of Russia on Monday in the first round of Wimbledon.
Williams has won three straight major titles, including the Australian Open and French Open. If she wins the title at the All England Club and then defends her title at the U.S. Open, she would be the first player since Steffi Graf in 1988 to win all four Grand Slam titles in the same season.
Williams started slow on the grass on Court 1, trailing 3-1 before turning things around and advancing to the second round.
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1:50 p.m.
Serena Williams is a half-hour into Wilmbledon and she’s already getting warned to watch her language.
In the sixth game of her first-round match against Margarita Gasparyan of Russia, a qualifier ranked 113th, Williams slid on the grass and fell during a point. After the next point, a lineswoman trotted over to the chair umpire, who announced: “Code violation, audible obscenity, Miss Williams.”
Williams glared at the lineswoman as she went back over to her position behind the baseline.
Williams, who has a 21-match Grand Slam winning streak, trailed 3-1 before taking three games in a row.
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12:50 p.m.
Victoria Azarenka is the first player to reach the second round of Wimbledon.
The 23rd-seeded Belarussian, a two-time Australian Open champion, beat Anett Kontaveit of Estonia 6-2, 6-1 on Court No. 12.
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12:45 p.m.
Nick Kyrgios hit it right on the head — on the head of a linesman, that is.
The 26th-seeded Australian was hitting back to the ball boy during his opening match at Wimbledon on Monday when he sent an errant shot toward the corner of the court that bounced off the top of the head of an unsuspecting linesman.
The linesman wasn’t hurt, and he and Kyrgios soon shared a laugh with the crowd. The linesman then wiped his brow and Kyrgios got back to work against Diego Schwartzman, jumping out to a 6-0, 6-2 lead.
Take a look at the video: http://clips.wimbledon.com/g/v/ae7vG2jHkDS
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12:05 p.m.
Rain shouldn’t be problem on the opening day at the All England Club.
Play has already started at Wimbledon, with some sun sneaking through the gray clouds overhead.
The dry weather and warm temperatures are expected to stay well into the first week.
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11:15 a.m.
Day 1 at Wimbledon is upon us, and Novak Djokovic is first up on Centre Court.
The defending champion from Serbia will take to the grass at about 1 p.m., but it will be no walk in the park against Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany.
Djokovic won his second title at Wimbledon last year, beating seven-time champion Roger Federer in five sets. The two could meet in the final again this year.
Stan Wawrinka, who beat Djokovic this month in the French Open final, is also scheduled to play on Centre Court, taking on Joao Sousa of Portugal.
In the women’s draw, top-seeded Serena Williams will continue her bid for a true Grand Slam by taking on Margarita Gasparyan of Russia on Court No. 1. Maria Sharapova, the 2004 champion at the All England Club, will be up against Johanna Konta of Britain in the main stadium.
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