Jannik Sinner survives Wimbledon scare, equals Italian Grand Slam record after epic comeback | Tennis news
LONDON: There was little of the authority that came to define Jannik Sinner these past few seasons. The defending champion splashed 52 unforced errors in three hours and 32 minutes, but when his Wimbledon The title defense threatened to unravel, recovering from a set to two to grind out the win.The 24-year-old secured his 94th Grand Slam win with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-7(6), 6-2, 6-3 win over Miomir Kecmanovic, equaling Nicola Pietrangeli’s record for most major match wins by an Italian player.“I was a little tight at the beginning, I didn’t play my best, but I tried to get into it. It was my first official match on grass this year. I’m glad I turned it around. The third set was hard to swallow,” said Sinner. “It was a very different feeling. There’s a lot of nerves when you walk down the stairs to (arrive) on the court. Also knowing that it’s such a prestigious and historic court. Coming back here as the defending champion means a lot to me.“The home crowd at SW19 endured a blistering opening day. Following Emma Raducanu’s finish on Sunday, Britain’s Jack Draper, the injury-plagued former world No. 4, withdrew from the tournament, although the afternoon sun offered respite from a scorching English summer. On Center Court, there was little consolation as Sinner spent most of the afternoon teetering on the edge, dealing with technical, tactical and physical issues.Sinner, playing his first match since his shocking second-round exit at Roland Garros last month, where he appeared to collapse in the heat, returned to Center Court with questions still hanging over him. Across the net stood the animated world No. 50, Kecmanovic stood.Little came easily. The Italian’s shot selection was off, going for drop shots from well behind the baseline, and his forehand was misfiring as he served out in the ninth game of the opening set. Kecmanovic, 26, took the opportunity without hesitation. Even after Sinner went 3-0 ahead in the second set, his game was worked on. As the temperature rose to 24°C, I reached for the ice towel.Then, after leveling the match, Sinner suffered a nasty fall in the fifth game of the third set, his green seemingly collapsing beneath him. Center Court held its breath as the defending champion winced in pain, before he immediately responded with a blistering forehand on the next point, prompting an audible exhale from the crowd. Even so, there was little he could do as the Serb regained the lead.Sinner, prompted by his box, coaches Darren Cahill and Simone Vagnozzi, who seemed to be playing every point with him as the world number 1 repeatedly turned to them in key moments, did well to get out of trouble. As he edged towards leveling the match at two sets apiece, a red mark appeared on the corner of his shoe, sparking concern in the stands, although it went largely unnoticed by the referee.“I know, it just looks a lot worse than it is. I’m actually very surprised that they let me keep playing because all the white has turned a little red,” he said. “It’s just a nail, I didn’t want to disturb Miomir, we both had a good rhythm. I didn’t want to take a time.”On Center Court, Naomi Osaka, who withdrew from her previous match, the WTA 500 final in Bad Homburg on Saturday, with a foot injury, took to the court in a striking kimono-inspired all-white look. Under the traditional style, her matching dress was an elegant one-piece with floral appliques, micro-pleating and a curved hem.The Japanese star was equally impressive on court, showing no sign of the injury that had troubled her just 48 hours earlier, as she recorded a 6-1, 7-5 win over France’s Elsa Jacquemot.Meanwhile, French Open runner-up Maja Chwalinska was just one point from victory in her Wimbledon first-round match before a slip while chasing deep behind the baseline on match point turned the contest, where she led 6-2, 5-2, on its head.The Pole, who had a surprise upset at the Roland Garros final in June, looked to carry that momentum into SW19 as he routed Mananchaya Sawangkaew before the Thai cruised past 2-6, 7-5, 6-2.
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