Jannik Sinner survived a scare in the first round of his Wimbledon title defence to beat Miomir Kecmanovic.
Sinner is the big Wimbledon favourite this year, but he twice found himself a set down against Kecmanovic.
Despite making 52 uncharacteristic unforced errors, Sinner was able to beat Kecmanovic 4-6, 6-3, 6(6)-7, 6-2, 6-3.
Sinner was able to answer the questions that Kecmanovic posed to him, but it was not until after the match that he confirmed if his foot was in pain after blood appeared on the white shoe on his right foot.
Jannik Sinner confirms his foot was bleeding in first round Wimbledon win
After beating Kecmanovic in five sets, Sinner spoke in his on-court interview about how much of an honour it was to open Centre Court as the defending champion.
“It’s such a huge honour to start the tournament and be the first player to come out here,” said Sinner. “I was a bit tight at the beginning and did not play my very best but tried to get into it.
“It was my first official match on grass, and that’s very important. The third set was very tough to swallow but I am very happy. It’s a big honour to play in front of you, so thanks for coming.”
Sinner was then quickly asked about his foot, but he reassured the crowd that it was not as bad as it seemed and only an issue with his toenail.
“I’m good! It seems much worse than it is,” answered Sinner. “I am actually very surprised they let me keep playing as all white turned into a little red! It was just a nail, I did not want to disturb Miomir. We had a good rhythm, it was a good match from both of us, so I did not want to take any time.”
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Sinner then continued to speak about the pressure of coming in as defending champion at Wimbledon and whether it felt different to other matches.
“It was a very different feeling,” said Sinner. “There is a lot of nerves when you go down the stairs, also mentally knowing it’s such a prestigious and historical court.
“Coming back here as defending champion means a lot to me even though every year is different and every year can be very tough. So to win the first one, of course we want to aim for a couple of improvements for the next match, but I can be very happy.”
Despite winning his first round match, it was not in the more straightforward fashion that Sinner has done so often in his career.
Sinner was clearly aware of this and admitted he needed to improve his forehand before his second round match.
“I felt the first couple of sets there were a lot of mistakes from the forehand side,” added the four-time Grand Slam champion. “It’s normal, first round matches are never easy, so I tried to accept that and raised my level when I needed to.
“The third set was very tough, with great points from his side. But this is tennis. Every day is different and I’m happy to be in the next round.”
Who is Jannik Sinner playing in the second round of Wimbledon?
After booking his place in the second round of Wimbledon, Sinner has confirmed that he will play against Portuguese player Nuno Borges.
This will be a second meeting between the two players, with Sinner beating Borges in their only previous encounter on indoor hard courts in Sofia four years ago.
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Sinner will be the big favourite to beat Borges once again, as his Portuguese opponent has only been past the second round of Wimbledon once in his four previous appearances.
However, Borges has the advantage of having come through a much quicker first round match, having beaten American Tristan Boyer in straight sets.
Sinner will be hoping for a much more convincing victory of his own when he plays Borges on Wednesday, July 1.
