Sinner crushes Nardi to reach Wimbledon second round

LONDON: World number one Jannick Sinner eased effortlessly into the second round at Wimbledon, as neither the stifling heat nor fellow Italian Luca Nardi could knock him out of his comfort zone in a 6-4 6-3 6-0 victory on Tuesday.

Returning to the Grand Slam stage for the first time since his epic French Open final defeat by Carlos Alcaraz, the three- times major winner had a much less testing workout against world number 95 Nardi.

His compatriot had spoken in the past about learning from Sinner but this was a lesson in the differences between the best and the rest.

Sinner was bigger, stronger, faster, hit the ball harder and served better, and although Nardi did his best to hang on to his coat tails in the first two sets, his compatriot was simply too good.

Sinner’s pressure was relentless, and Nardi did well to save four break points in the first set before eventually crumbling under an increasingly hostile assault in the 10th game.

A stunning forehand winner brought up another two break points for Sinner and while the first went begging, there was no further reprieve for the 21-year-old.

If anything was going to unsettle Sinner it was the fierce heat on Court One as Wimbledon basked in the second day of a punishing heat wave, but with ice-packed towels draped around his neck at each change-over, the world number one never looked like losing his cool.

He eased through the second set in cruise control after breaking for a 2-0 lead, conceding only a handful of points on serve as Nardi’s efforts looked increasingly forlorn.

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The motorbike-loving Nardi had no answer as Sinner went full throttle through the final set, breaking in the opening game and twice more before clinching victory with a service winner.

Tennis fans and heatwave in Europe

Tennis devotees armed themselves with hats, sun cream, mini-fans and a sense of humour for the first day of Wimbledon Monday, as the tournament provisionally recorded its hottest ever opener.

“If we sweat, we sweat — we know each other well,” laughed Cathy Butcher, 73, arriving with her daughter Helen.

The retiree said she had a “dodgy hip and my daughter is heavily pregnant” but that they would focus on keeping cool and enjoying the day.

“We’re hoping for a cool breeze” and some “great tennis”, added her 31-year-old daughter.