On a day of delays and disruption at Wimbledon, some things remained reassuringly familiar.
Novak Djokovic made his latest impression on the record books, resisting a spirited challenge from Australia’s Jordan Thompson to join Roger Federer and Serena Williams in the ultra-exclusive club of players with 350 or more grand slam wins.
Iga Swiatek, perhaps forgetting that she was playing on a grass court at Wimbledon rather than a clay court at Roland Garros, steamrollered Spain’s Sara Sorribes Tormo for the loss of just two games.
Daniil Medvedev, the third seed, notched up a tour-leading 42nd win of the season with a 7-5, 6-4, 6-3 victory over Arthur Fery, a net-rushing 20-year-old Brit making his grand slam debut.
Such is the charmed life of the tournament’s top seeds, scheduled under the retractable roofs of Centre and No 1 Courts and thus sequestered from the vagaries of the British summer time.
“I’m happy that my matches were scheduled under the roof, so I always was certain that it’s going to actually happen,” said Swiatek, the world No 1 and top seed. “It’s a little bit easier to prepare knowing that.
“I would still be ready anyway if my match was suspended or something, [but] for sure it’s more comfortable. I would say you have this normal grand slam rhythm with one day off, one day of playing matches.”
Others were less fortunate. Outside, the rainfall that has blighted the opening days of the fortnight continued. The start of play was pushed back. And back, and back. When the skies finally cleared, Maria Sakkari, the Greek eighth seed, stormed through the opening set against Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk. Then the heavens opened once again. On the resumption of play, Sakkari was bundled out 0-6, 7-5, 6-2.
She wasn’t the only high-profile casualty. Karolina Pliskova, a finalist in SW19 two years ago, was beaten 6-2, 6-3 by Serbia’s Natalija Kostic, a qualifier ranked 225.
But the most notable action took place out on Court 18, where play was twice interrupted by environmental protesters. The first incident occurred when a man and a woman ran on to the grass in the early stages of Grigor Dimitrov’s 6-1, 6-2, 6-1 win over Japan’s Sho Shimabukuro, spreading orange confetti and pieces of a Wimbledon jigsaw puzzle over the playing surface.
“Obviously it’s not pleasant,” said Dimitrov. “There is not much you can do. I think everyone in a way did their part as quick as possible.
“Rain was coming, so it was also a little bit fortunate to come off the court and have some time to, you know, kind of like regroup a little bit.”
No sooner had the All England Club issued a statement confirming that the offenders had been arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass and criminal damage, than a second incident occurred. With Daria Saville leading Britain’s Katie Boulter 4-2 in a first-set tiebreak, a man ran on to the court and performed an identical act. He too was arrested.
This time, the incident had more significant ramifications. On the resumption of play, Saville did not win another point in the tiebreak, going on to lose in straight sets, 7-6 (7-4), 6-2.
“It was upsetting,” said the Australian. “I was like ‘Oh, my God, why on my court out of all of them?’ I’m the worst with being able to refocus.
“I’ve always struggled with concentration, so it’s probably the toughest circumstances I have had to deal with.”
Elsewhere, Stefanos Tsitsipas survived an epic against Dominic Thiem in a match that was halted by rain midway through the second set on Tuesday. The Greek fifth seed prevailed 3-6, 7-6 (7-1), 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (10-8) in three hours and 56 minutes to set up a blockbuster meeting with Andy Murray, the two-time former champion.
“He’s someone that I respect,” said Tsitsipas. “Obviously he’s older than me. He has done great things in tennis. I’m looking forward to this match. I hope there’s plenty for me to learn.
“Regardless of the outcome, I feel like I really want to go out there and give it a shot and aim for being super strong and disciplined in that match, because it will require lots of that. If I’m in there persistent and focused on my goal, I feel like anything is possible.”
Whatever the outcome, it promises to be a more amicable affair than the fiery first-round encounter between the pair at the 2021 US Open, where Murray was incensed after Tsitsipas took two lengthy, momentum-breaking bathroom breaks. The players resolved their differences at last year’s Laver Cup, where they were team-mates.
“I think it has been settled already a long time ago,” said Tsitsipas, who lost in straight sets to Murray in their only other meeting, which came on grass in Stuttgart last summer.
“We had to play Laver Cup together in the same team. I’ve forgotten about it. He has forgotten about it.”