Is 2024 the year Casper Ruud gets to grips with the Wimbledon grass?
The eighth-seeded Norwegian on Monday made a rapid start to his latest campaign at the London major with a 7-6(2), 6-4, 6-4 triumph against qualifier Alex Bolt. Ruud delivered a rock-solid display on the All England Club’s No. 3 Court, wrapping just his third victory in five main-draw appearances in two hours and 13 minutes.
“I feel good. It’s nice to stand here now as the winner of the match,” said Ruud, who needed six match points to see off the No. 235 in the PIF ATP Rankings after a tough final two games of their maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head clash. “It could have been 5-5 or even 6-5 to him, so two tricky games to end, but I’m happy to win one of them and close the match.
“It’s great to be back at Wimbledon, and every win I can get here is good for my confidence and my career.”
This from @CasperRuud98 😍@Wimbledon | #wimbledon pic.twitter.com/Gh1c1Jczwx
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Ruud’s serve was the foundation for his triumph against Australian Bolt. The three-time major finalist sent down 18 aces and won 85 per cent (53/62) of points behind his first serve.
After clinching his Tour-leading 40th victory of the season in his first appearance of 2024 on grass, Ruud now prepares for a second-round meeting with Fabio Fognini. The former World No. 9 Fognini also enjoyed a comfortable opening win by overcoming #NextGenATP Frenchman Luca Van Assche 6-1, 6-3, 7-5.
Ruud’s fellow Top 10 star Grigor Dimitrov notched an even faster win on Day 1 at SW19. The 10th seed prevailed 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 against Dusan Lajovic to set a second-round clash against Shang Juncheng.
A former Wimbledon semi-finalist, Dimitrov immediately signalled his comfort on the south-west London grass by breaking Lajovic’s serve in the second game of the match. After also riding an early break to clinch the second set, the Bulgarian rallied from 0-3 in the third set to seal a one-hour, 45-minute triumph in his first Grand Slam meeting with Serbia’s Lajovic.
Dimitrov will next hope to maintain his level in his first Lexus ATP Head2Head clash with #NextGenATP star Shang. The Chinese 19-year-old registered a 7-5, 6-4, 6-4 against Cristian Garin on his Wimbledon main-draw debut to set the pair’s second-round clash.
Stan Wawrinka and Denis Shapovalov joined Dimitrov in making it a bright Monday for fans of the one-handed backhand. The pair also notched straight-sets wins to get their respective Wimbledon campaigns up and running.
Two-time quarter-finalist Wawrinka downed home wild card Charles Broom 6-3, 7-5, 6-4 to reach the second round at Wimbledon for the 11th time. The 39-year-old Swiss will next take on 37-year-old Gael Monfils, who saw off his countryman Adrian Mannarino 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, 6-4.
Canada’s Shapovalov, who reached his only major semi-final at Wimbledon in 2021, took out 19th seed Nicolas Jarry 6-1, 7-5, 6-4. The 25-year-old Shapovalov, a former World No. 10 who has dropped to No. 121 after injury struggles in the past 12 months, will face Daniel Altmaier or wild card Arthur Fery next.
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