Today at Wimbledon: Everything you need to know about day two

Double default leaves crowd short-changed

Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer were rewarded for their distinguished past endeavours at the championships with cakewalks into the second round when both their opponents defaulted with injuries after 83 minutes' resistance. 

Given that many spectators on Centre Court who felt blessed by their great good fortune of acquiring tickets for back-to-back first-round matches involving the multiple champions were instead left feeling short-changed by the experience.

Djokovic, who has a hat-trick of singles titles here, was 6-3, 2-0 ahead of Martin Klizan when his opponent pulled up and pulled out. Klizan has been troubled recently by a left calf problem.

Federer was one game further on, 6-3, 3-0 clear of Alexandr Dolgopolov when the Ukrainian withdrew.

It meant the crowd saw less than an hour and a half of action across the two matches, and Djokovic even suggested he and Federer briefly considered playing an exhibition set for the unlucky fans. Instead, an extra women's singles match featuring Caroline Wozniacki was added to the Centre Court bill.

Reacting to the peculiar turn of events, Djokovic said: "It's really odd that Roger's result and my result were more or less the same. We had a little joke about it in the locker room, saying we should maybe play a practice set on the Centre Court, have the crowd stay. But they had another match.

"It doesn't happen often really. This tournament has a special place in players' careers. In this sport, there's so much weight behind it and significance about it. The aura of Wimbledon has probably always been the strongest of any other tournament.

"I'm sure that most of the players on the tour, if not all, feel that. Especially if you walk out on the Centre Court, there is a responsibility. I'm sure they tried their best, but it is what it is."

Kerber overcomes stutter with fluent recovery

There are some tennis players who relish being the world No1, who draw strength and confidence from being acknowledged the best. It is safe to say Angelique Kerber is not one of them. Ever since she climbed to the top of the WTA rankings, the German’s form has been plummeting. In 2016 she won the Australian and US Opens, lost in the final at Wimbledon and took silver in the Olympics. Since becoming No1 at the turn of the year, she has won zero tournaments and suffered more first-round defeats than she has reached finals.

And here she was taking on the ceremonial duty of opening up the women’s singles tournament on Centre Court in the absence of the champion Serena Williams.She was playing Irina Falconi, who sat a mere 246 places below her in the world rankings. And while she won 6-4, 6-4 this was a scoreline that disguised many an insecurity. 

She began as if rumours of her decline had been wildly exaggerated, winning the first three games. Then something seemed to switch off in her head. Serving for a 4-0 lead she double faulted, then punched one of her double-handed backhand returns into the net. A couple more unforced errors and she found her serve broken. This was her year in microcosm: glorious success suddenly transmogrifying into nervy, neurotic self-destruction.

As Kerber stuttered out on court, so her opponent began to mainline confidence. Falconi began enjoying herself, putting in a couple of outrageous lobs that had the underdog-loving Centre Court crowd purring. A lovely winner in the seventh game got her back to within a break of parity.

Kerber, full of self-criticism, was by now thwacking the soles of her trainers with her racket. But then Falconi, presented with an open court with which to lob her way to parity, missed her shot and let the No1 back in. The German did not require a second invitation, putting away the first set with a love game.

Even as Falconi began to deliver some magnificent shots, Kerber accumulated sufficient winners to take the second set. "I’m on my way,” she insisted. “The last few months I had a few ups and downs, a lot of things I’ve learned from. But now I’m feeling good.”     

Edmund eases ahead

Kyle Edmund advanced to the second round for Wimbledon for the first time in his career, overcoming a slow start to ease past Alex Ward, his fellow Brit, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-1.

After four previous first-round exits, Edmund took full advantage of been drawn against Ward, the World No 869, losing the first set before racing away with the match.

The 22-year-old from Yorkshire, ranked No 50, dropped only six games as he won the next three sets inside 90 minutes.

His reward is a match against against Gaël Monfils, the No 15 seed, and this victory will do him the world of good, not simply for removing the SW19 monkey from his back, but for the confidence he gained in his shot-making.

His initial hesitancy gave way to controlled aggression. There is real venom in both his serve and forehand while he produced a series of passing backhands of considerable technique.

Ward’s career has been blighted by injury. Last year he missed six months after contracting De Quervain's syndrome where the tendons in his wrist became inflamed. Even now he wears a heavy ankle strapping and inevitably he wilted over the course of two hours under the sun on No3 Court.

Ward went on the attack from the start and it proved a prudent strategy as Edmund was broken through a double fault. Eventually Edmund found his stride and started dictating the terms.

It was not all bad for Ward, the 27-year-old and British No 19. The £35,000 cheque is the biggest pay day of his career and will allow him to clear his credit-card debts that have mounted up as he grinds a living on the Futures circuit.

Edmund, the fifth British player to qualify for the second round, will now revert to the role of the underdog.

Twerp of the day

Not for the first time the award goes to the talented but mercurial Bernard Tomic, AKA 'Tomic the Tank Engine', who went down to defeat by Mischa Zverev 6-4 6-3 6-4 in only 79 minutes.

"I felt a little bit bored out there," said the man who has not won a title for two years. "The last sort of year or two, nothing motivates. It's not I don't give my best. I still try to go for it in a way. I think I don't respect the sport enough. You know, I'm going to play another 10 years, and I know after my career I won't have to work again."

If he deserves kudos for honesty it is defeated by frustration for his judgment. 

Visitor of the day

A day for sportsmen and women of a certain vintage in the Royal Box on Tuesday including Geoffrey Boycott of Yorkshire, England and The Telegraph, Howard Wilkinson, the last English football manager to win England's top division, and Matt Dawson, England's World Cup-winning scrum-half.

Bong! Trevor McDonald was back again and the prime time TV couple Tess Daly and Vernon Kay. Also present were tournament regulars Stephen Fry, the actor, writer, and presenter and his husband,  the comedian Elliott Spencer.

"I'm even more of a Wimbledon fan than I am a tennis fan," Fry said in 2013. "There's something very magical about it ... quite extraordinarily perfect." 

Topiary of the day

Let's be frank, it's not exactly a crowded field down in SW19. Sadly there are no 'verdant sculptures', in Alexander Pope's words, of John McEnroe's head or the Duke of Kent's profile or a bottle of fizz.

But there is a tennis ball, beautifully sculpted, that would not look out of place at Portmeirion or Stiffkey.

Where topiary leads, millinery follows, and Wimbledon is never free from a gimmicky hat designed entirely with the purpose of  getting its wearer noticed.

The thing is ... it never fails. 

Visual metaphor of the day

Day two was rather deadened by the two retirements on Centre Court that conceded walkovers to Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer after merely 83 minutes of action.

It's difficult to convey the palpable sense of disappointment visually.

 So, credit to David Ramos for doing just that.