The sun was swapped out for the rain on day two of the Wimbledon championships as a flurry of Brits got their campaigns underway.
There were some marathon matches – look to Paul Jubb’s collapse from two sets up – and some rapid fire wins – looking at you Jessica Pegula.
Stars braved the rain to sample the delights of VIP, while Andy Murray’s withdrawal from the singles left a cloud over an already gloomy day.
Mail Sport’s NATHAN SALT was on hand to recap some of the things you may have missed from the opening day of the championships.
Novak Djokovic headlined Centre Court on day two as he made his return from surgery
There was joy for the Brits as Katie Boulter set up a second round clash against Harriet Dart
Short and not-so-sweet for Marketa
You had to feel for Marketa Vondrousova, who served up one of the most forgettable Wimbledon title defences in living memory.
The defending women’s champion found defending pretty hard to do in her opening round match against world No 83 Jessica Boozes Maneiro.
Vondrousova’s 28 unforced errors, and seven double faults, held the hand of the Spaniard en route to victory and while a shocking upset, few around the All England Club seemed surprised.
It seems to be a trend here that the victor struggles, with the returning champion having reached the three round only once over the past seven Wimbledon women’s singles editions.
Marketa Vondrousova’s women’s singles title defence was over in a flash on Centre Court
2017 – Serena Williams was pregnant
2018 – Garbine Muguruza lost in R2
2019 – Angelique Kerber lost in R2
2021 – Simona Halep was injured
2022 – Ash Barty had retired
2023 – Elena Rybakina got to QFs
2024 – Marketa Vondrousova lost in R1
Ace king puts Court 16 through the ringer
When fans are plotting out their path for the day few sat on Court 16 when play started at 11am would have expected to have only been through one-and-a-half matches by the time they checked their watches to see it was 6.30pm.
That was, in large part, down to the five-set marathon that played out between Sebastian Korda and Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, who won it 7-6, 6-7, 7-6, 6-7, 6-3, hitting a staggering 51 aces.
Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard delivered 51 aces in an epic five-set match against Seb Korda
Jessica’s great escape
Whether it is a stroll through Wimbledon village, a nearby drink or sampling the coffee shops, players love to keep busy during their down-time at this tournament.
For US hopeful Jessica Pegula that involved tackling an escape room with her sister.
‘I did an escape room a few days ago with my sister. That’s not really a tradition, it’s just we were bored,’ she laughed.
Well, there was no need for any escapology in her first round match up after a 49-minute thrashing of fellow American Ashlyn Kreuger.
Jessica Pegula has been spending her spare time at Wimbledon in escape rooms with family
Stars out in force
Dave Grohl may have been the man sat in the Royal Box but there were plenty of familiar faces skulking the Wimbledon grounds.
Noel Gallagher was all smiles, even when the rain stopped play, while Ronnie O’Sullivan bizarrely pitched up in Novak Djokovic’s player box. One opinion-splitting athlete supporting another is one way to describe that union.
Fresh from exiting Euro 2024, Chelsea and Ukraine winger Mykhailo Mudryk decided to go from player to punter as he roared on his nation’s hopefuls on the drizzly outside courts.
Ronnie O’Sullivan found himself in Novak Djokovic’s player box for his return on Tuesday
Worry grows for Rublev
Serious questions are being asked about Andrey Rublev after his latest on-court meltdown saw him smash himself in the leg seven times en route to losing to a Grand Slam debutante.
Rublev, a quarter-finalist in 2023, became the first top 10 to lose on the men’s singles draw in this year’s tournament and afterwards, he told Mail Sport why he let rip on his thighs just a month after a total on-court explosion at the French Open.
‘I don’t know why in that moment, I couldn’t take it any more,’ he said. ‘I needed to let emotions out. But thanks, everything is fine. Again, I was a bit lucky [it wasn’t worse].’
Fans are growing concerned for Andrey Rublev’s welfare after his latest on-court meltdown
The Russian let rip on his body by smashing his legs with his racquet on seven occassions
Busca sets the standard
The lesser known Spaniard Cristina Bucsa hit the headlines for a staggering effort in her opening round win over Ana Bogdan for the fact she ran 20.5 kilometres in the process.
The 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 win for the Spaniard was most definitely a marathon and not a sprint as she blitzed more than 5,250metres. A lie down couldn’t come quickly enough for her.