Hello and welcome to Center Court, where we are primed and ready for the first British hope to step onto the hallowed turf: Emma Raducanu, who will be ready in a few minutes for her first round match with Renata Zarazua.
Without having touched a single tennis ball, Raducanu’s morning seemed, at least in appearance, enchanted. First came the news that the former British number one’s opponent, Ekaterina Alexandrova, had withdrawn due to illness, placing her in the match against a lucky loser who was ranked 98th in the world.
Then another run of possible good luck, with the disappointing withdrawal of world number 3 Aryna Sabalenka. The Belarusian has been struggling with a rare shoulder injury and her final training session on Monday morning was too much for her.
Sabalenka was possibly Raducanu’s biggest hurdle in what now looks like a very open section of the draw. That is, if Raducanu manages to pass his first test, on the most important stage of all.
The match has just ended between current men’s champion Carlos Alcaraz and Mark Lajal, with the Spaniard winning in two sets, not as easy as it seems at first glance, against the Estonian from the qualifier.
- Ben Brereton Diaz is dropped by Chile because he CAN’T speak Spanish – as the English-born Sheffield United striker is told he ‘has had enough time to learn’ since his first call-up in 2021
- Former Man United striker Louis Saha advises the Red Devils youngster to become the ‘NEXT Paul Scholes’ – and also compares the rising star to Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham.
- Pep Guardiola insists Manchester City believe they CAN repeat last season’s heroics and defend their Champions League crown
- Novak Djokovic beaten at Indian Wells by lucky loser Luca Nardi, 6-4 3-6 6-3
