Related items

• Wimbledon: Djokovic 'would not have risked' knee injury at any other tournament

  Novak Djokovic enjoyed a triumphant return to Wimbledon, where the 24-time major champion says he "would not have risked" his knee injury anywhere else.

  The 37-year-old eased past Vit Kopriva 6-1 6-2 6-2 under the roof on Centre Court in Tuesday's first-round clash.

  That victory comes less than a month on from the Serb requiring surgery for a knee issue after withdrawing midway through the French Open.

  Djokovic, aiming to equal Roger Federer's record eight titles at the All England Club, suggested he would not have played through the pain at any other tournament on the ATP circuit.

  "Everything that I could do, I have done over the last three weeks along with my team to be able to play here for you today," Djokovic said during his on-court interview. 

  "I think if it was for any other tournament I probably would not have risked it, would not have rushed as much but I just love Wimbledon, love coming back here."

  Djokovic battled throughout with protective support on his right leg, though that appeared no issue in a dominant triumph against the Czech qualifier.

  His reward will be a second-round clash against British wildcard Jacob Fearnley or Spanish qualifier Alejandro Moro Canas.

  It will be Djokovic's 19th appearance in the second round at Wimbledon, equalling Federer for the most such outings in the men's singles draw at this event during the Open Era.

  The message from the seven-time Wimbledon champion was clear heading into the next clash, with his focus on performance, rather than his troublesome injury.

  "I tried to really focus on the game and not think about the knee too much," Djokovic added.

• Wimbledon: Djokovic cruises past Kopriva on injury return

  Novak Djokovic made a smooth return to the court after knee surgery, cruising past Vit Kopriva in straight sets to reach the second round of Wimbledon.

  The world number two, wearing a knee support, looked to be moving comfortably as he saw off Kopriva 6-1 6-2 6-2 on Centre Court in just under two hours.

  Djokovic got his first real test just four games in but fought to get an all-important break at the sixth attempt before winning the next three games to take the first set.

  Kopriva had no answers to Djokovic's aggressive serves, and giving up two more breaks on his own, failed to mount any real challenge during the second.

  It was the same story in the third set, as the seven-time champion won the last four games in a row to set up a meeting with Jacob Fearnley or Alejandro Moro Canas in the next round.

  Data Debrief: Djokovic makes perfect return

  Djokovic was forced to withdraw from his last grand slam match, with his knee injury stopping him from competing in the quarter-final at Roland Garros last month.

  With his Wimbledon participation thrown into doubt when he had surgery, he will be pleased with the dominant nature of the win.

  The Serb dropped just five games over the three sets, none of which were on his own serve.

  Djokovic will be appearing in the second round at Wimbledon for the 19th time in his career. He equals Roger Federer for the most second-round appearances in the men's singles draw at this event during the Open Era.

• Wimbledon: Defending champion Vondrousova crashes out in first round

  Defending champion Marketa Vondrousova crashed out of Wimbledon in the first round after Jessica Bouzas Maneiro pulled off a stunning upset.

  Vondrousova was opening Tuesday's play on Centre Court against an opponent who came into the contest having never won a match at a major and with just one career win to her name at senior WTA Tour level.

  But Bouzas Maneiro wrapped up a 6-4 6-2 win in just 67 minutes as the sixth seed fell at the first hurdle.

  Last year Vondrousova became the only unseeded player to win the women's singles at Wimbledon in the Open Era and, at 42 in the world, was lowest-ranked winner of the title in the past four decades. 

  But having struggled with a hip injury leading up to Wimbledon, her preparations for the 2024 tournament had been hampered and she struggled throughout, with Bouzas Maneiro celebrating the win of her life.

  There was a much better opening round of the competition for the fourth and fifth seeds, Elena Rybakina and Jessica Pegula.

  Rybakina got up and running with a comfortable 6-3 6-1 victory over Elena-Gabriela Ruse on Court One.

  The Wimbledon champion of 2022 has never lost in the first three rounds at the All England club and while she was broken in the opening game of the match, her impressive run in the early stages of the tournament never looked in danger once she had fought back to win the opening set.

  Rybakina won 22 of her 24 points on first serve in the match and will face Germany's Laura Siegemund in round two.

  Pegula also made a strong start, cruising past her fellow American Ashlyn Krueger.

  It only took Pegula, who recently won the Berlin Ladies Open, 49 minutes to triumph 6-2 6-0 on No.2 Court. 

  Pegula did not concede a single break-point opportunity in a dominant performance.

  Data Debrief: Vondrousova makes unwanted history

  Vondrousova is the first Wimbledon champion to crash out in the first round of the subsequent year's tournament for 30 years.

  The last player to suffer that fate was seven-time Wimbledon champion Steffi Graf, who fell at the first hurdle in 1994.

  Graf went on to win Wimbledon on two more occasions in 1995 and 1996, so Vondrouosva will hope she can also bounce back after a chastening afternoon.

  She ended the match with 28 unforced errors and committed seven double faults, with Bouzas Maneiro a worthy winner after winning 61 total points to Vondrousova's 43.