Serbia’s Novak Djokovic takes part in a training session at the All England Lawn Tennis Club in west London on June 27, 2023 the week before the Wimbledon Championships tennis tournament are due to start on July 3. (Photo by Ben Stansall / AFP)
Novak Djokovic to open up Centre Court on Wimbledon day one
Defending champion and second seed Novak Djokovic will open up Centre Court on the opening day of play of Wimbledon 2023.
Serbia’s Novak Djokovic takes part in a training session at the All England Lawn Tennis Club in west London on June 27, 2023 the week before the Wimbledon Championships tennis tournament are due to start on July 3. (Photo by Ben Stansall / AFP)
Defending champion and second seed Novak Djokovic will open up Centre Court on the opening day of play of Wimbledon 2023.
Djokovic will face Argentina’s Pedro Cachin from 14:30 (SAST) on Centre Court at the All England Club.
Novak Djokovic to open up Wimbledon Centre Court
The Serbian is out to claim his fifth successive Wimbledon title and draw level with Margaret Court as the player with the most Grand Slam singles titles of all time.
“I still feel hungry for success, for more Grand Slams, more achievements in tennis,” said Djokovic.
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“As long as there’s that drive, I know that I’m able to compete at the highest level.
He added: “A few days after Roland Garros, I was already thinking about preparation for grass and what needs to be done.”
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What follows at Wimbledon
The match that follows the Djokovic opener on Centre Court will see former champion Venus Williams take on Elina Svitolina of Ukraine.
Once Williams and Svitolina conclude their business the stage will be handed over to a pair of 21-year-olds as No 8 seed Jannik Sinner takes on Juan Manuel Cerundolo of Argentina.
Meanwhile, top-seeded woman Iga Swiatek will open up Court 1 against Lin Zhu of China from 14:00.
Blockbuster Australian Nick Kyrgios follows on Court 1 as he kicks off his bid for another deep run against veteran Belgian David Goffin.
Former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin will then take on seventh seed Coco Gauff in the final Court 1 match of the first day.
No 2 Court will be opened by an All-American clash between No 4 seed Jessica Pegula and Lauren Davis from 12:00 (SAST).
Andrey Rublev and Max Purcell open up the No 3 court from the same time with play starting on the outer courts from midday.
South Africa’s Lloyd Harris
South Africa’s Lloyd Harris reached the semi-finals in Mallorca last week for his best run of the season so far and starts his Wimbledon against Frenchman Gregoire Barrere.
Harris’ match is scheduled to be the fourth on the No 4 Court on day one but could well be bumped to the second day.
