Week one of Wimbledon is almost in the books and the All England Championships have certainly not disappointed. From Rafa to Rog to royals and battle royals, there has been something for everyone as the world’s oldest tennis tournament is played for the 124th time.
The undisputed highlight of week one was the epic first round match that was played between American John Isner and Frenchman Nicolas Mahut. Commencing as day two came to a close, the indomitable giants were still trading blows two days later.
The match shattered almost every longevity record set in tennis and it’s unlikely the world will ever see anything like this again.
In the end, Isner prevailed 6-4 3-6 6-7(7) 7-6(3) 70-68 (do not adjust your screen). The match lasted a remarkable 11 hours and five minutes across three days, which included a 491 minute final set. Each player hammered down more than 100 aces, which can account for 168 straight service games being held.
Remarkably, Mahut was back on court playing doubles late on day four as Isner wondered how on earth he would back up to play Dutchman Thiemo De Bakker in the second round.
While the world’s eyes were fixed on the enthralling struggle on Court 18, Australia had nine players in action throughout the men’s and women’s main draw.
Lleyton Hewitt is the sole Australian man left standing, but the No.15 seed has a favourable draw and should be confident of putting a solid run together. The former champion started with a four set victory over Maximo Gonzalez before Evgeny Korolev retired from their round two encounter, which Hewitt was controlling.
The South Australian next meets Frenchman Gael Monfils and, if successful, a likely fourth-round clash with Serb Novak Djokovic looms.
The other three Australian men in the draw all bowed out in the opening round. Peter Luczak lost to Arnaud Clement, Carsten Ball to Ricardas Berankis and Bernard Tomic was defeated by Mardy Fish, but was the youngest Wimbledon competitor to come through qualifying in 2010, so will be better for the experience.
Sam Stosur headlined a five-strong Aussie cast in the women’s draw, but the French Open runner-up was a surprise first-round casualty. The world No.6 who has traditionally struggled at Wimbledon went down in straight sets to free-swinging Estonian Kaia Kanepi.
The news isn’t all bad for Australia though with Jarmila Groth and Anastasia Rodionova both progressing through to the third round.
Groth has looked strong in both of her straight-sets victories, while Rodionova was made to work a bit harder. The 28-year-old fought back from a 0-3 deficit in the final set against local hope Anne Keothavong, then overcame dual Grand Slam winner Svetlana Kuznetsova in a heated contest.
The women have hit somewhat of a purple patch, reaching the third round of Wimbledon just a fortnight after they did likewise at Roland Garros. Groth’s next assignment is German Angelique Kerber, while Rodionova faces Chinese No.9 seed and 2010 Australian Open semifinalist Li Na.
Meanwhile, Casey Dellacqua’s comeback from injury only lasted two sets while compatriot Alicia Molik went down to Greta Arn in the second round.
Stay tuned to www.wimbledon.org for all the latest news, scores and draws.
