Jannik Sinner of Italy, Carlos Alcaraz of Spain and other top seeds kicked off Wimbledon with first-round victories on Monday in London. World No. 1 Sinner handled Germany's Yannick Hanfmann 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, and defending champion Alcaraz swept past Estonian qualifier Mark Lajal 7-6 (3), 7-5, 6-2.
Sinner, seeking his second career Grand Slam title after winning the Australian Open in January, hit 16 aces and saved 9 of 11 break points against Hanfmann. He slipped behind 4-0 in the third set but made his opponent work for the set before overtaking him in the fourth. "When you go a break down immediately it's tough to recover, but how I reacted in the fourth set was very positive and ending the match in a very positive way hopefully can help me to start the next round," Sinner said.
"It's a huge privilege and honor to be in the position that I am and there is no better place than here to play my first Grand Slam as a World No. 1. It's an amazing feeling, but every match starts at zero-zero and every opponent wants to win, as I do.
" Sinner's second-round foe will be fellow Italian Matteo Berrettini, the 2021 Wimbledon finalist on the comeback trail from multiple injuries. Berrettini defeated Hungary's Marton Fucsovics 7-6 (3), 6-2, 3-6, 6-1. Playing at Centre Court, Alcaraz wasn't on his A game when serving -- he hit just four aces to four double faults -- but he won the final four points of the first-set tiebreaker against Lajal to propel him into the rest of the match.
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