Wimbledon Day 2 matches to watch: Nadal, Federer, Serena in action
LONDON — Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are among the players in first-round action at Wimbledon on Tuesday. Here are the storylines and matches to watch on Day 2. Play begins on the outer courts at 6:30 a.m. ET and 8 a.m. on the three show courts. ESPN starts its coverage at 7 a.m. and ESPNews takes over at 11:30 a.m. Click here for the order of play, and see the full TV schedule here.
Storylines
Rafael Nadal tries to snap grass losing streak: Nadal opens against Martin Klizan (second match, Centre Court) seeking to snap a three-match grass-court losing skid, which covers defeats to Lukas Rosol at Wimbledon in 2012, Steve Darcis at Wimbledon in 2013 and Dustin Brown at the Gerry Weber Open two weeks ago. As Nadal said, it’s a difficult tournament for the top players in the early rounds because of the new grass and change in surface after several weeks on clay. Klizan has the power to bother him.
The American No. 1s take the court: Five-time champion Serena Williams opens against newly naturalized American Anna Tatishvili (third match, Centre Court), who is ranked No. 113. John Isner meets British wild card Daniel Smethurst (third match, No. 3 Court), who is ranked No. 243. Both should cruise.
Sabine Lisicki fills in for Mario Bartoli: Lisicki, the 2013 finalist, is taking the defending champion’s spot on Centre Court (first match) after Bartoli’s retirement. Lisicki did not play a grass-court lead-up tournament. Her results after Wimbledon last year were terrible, and she’s won back-to-back matches just once this year. She faces No. 79 Julia Glushko, who made the third round of the French Open.
Matches to watch
Roger Federer [4] vs. Paolo Lorenzi (second match, No. 1 Court): I’m among those picking Federer to win Wimbledon for the eighth time. That prediction is based in good part on his draw, which shouldn’t be too tricky before the semifinals. I expect a grass-court clinic from the Swiss against the 32-year-old Lorenzi in their first career meeting. (Federer-Lorenzi will follow the completion of the Jo-Wilfried Tsonga-Jurgen Melzer match, which was suspended for rain on Monday with Tsonga set to serve for the victory at 5-4 in the fifth.)
Eugenie Bouchard [13] vs. Daniela Hantuchova (fourth match, No. 1 Court): Is anyone surprised this match got Court 1 placement? This could be a good test for Bouchard, who lost her only grass match of the season, last week in the Netherlands. Hantuchova, 31, is playing her 14th consecutive Wimbledon, where she advanced to the quarterfinals in 2002 but lost in the first round in each of the last two years. She’s capable of playing good grass-court tennis.
Madison Keys vs. Monica Puig (second match, Court 8): Keys is fresh off winning the Aegon International, her first WTA title. She’s 0-2 against Puig, with both losses on clay in straight sets. But if Keys is clicking like she was in Eastbourne last week — she fired 60 winners, including 17 aces, in a 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 victory against Angelique Kerber in the final — she should beat Puig on this surface.
Klara Koukalova [31] vs. Taylor Townsend (third match, Court 17): Last year Townsend was playing the junior Wimbledon final, where she lost to Belinda Bencic. Now the 18-year-old American makes her Wimbledon main-draw debut thanks to a wild card, and she’ll attempt to build on her confidence-boosting run to the third round at Roland Garros. Koukalova will be a big challenge. The Czech plays well on grass, making the third round or better at Wimbledon in each of the last four years.
Ana Ivanovic [11] vs. Francesca Schiavone (TBA): This match between two French Open champions will likely be moved to a show court given the short schedule on Centre Court and No. 1 Court. Ivanovic won the Aegon Classic two weeks ago for her first career grass-court title and and third title overall this year. Schiavone isn’t a grass-courter by any means, but her wily game based on variety and angles could frustrate Ivanovic. Still, Ivanovic is a solid pick for a deep run.
