Wimbledon day one: Sabalenka pulls out as Raducanu, Alcaraz and Sinner all win

Aryna Sabalenka was forced to withdraw from Wimbledon hours before her first round match (John Walton/PA)

Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner claimed routine day one wins at Wimbledon, but the bottom half of the women’s draw was blown wide open with a string of withdrawals led by third seed Aryna Sabalenka.

Sabalenka, fellow Belarusian Victoria Azarenka and Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova were all forced to pull out due to injury or illness, which was followed by impressive victories for Coco Gauff, Naomi Osaka and Emma Raducanu.

Raducanu was one of three British female winners alongside Lily Miyazaki and Sonay Kartal to whet the appetite for an action-packed day two where 12 home hopes are set to be in action – if Andy Murray decides to compete in the singles.

Tweet of the day

Heartbroken to have to tell you all that I won’t be able to play The Championships this year. I tried everything to get myself ready but unfortunately my shoulder is not cooperating. This tournament means so much to me and I promise I’ll be back stronger than ever next year. ❤️
— Sabalenka Aryna (@SabalenkaA) July 1, 2024

Picture of the day

Wimbledon 2024 – Day One – All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club — David Beckham (left) and Sir David Attenborough (right) were in attendance on day one of the 2024 Championships at Wimbledon (John Walton/PA)

Quote of the day

Brit watch

Emma Raducanu beat Renata Zarazua 7-6 (0) 6-3
Lily Miyazaki beat Tamara Korpatsch 6-2 6-1
Sonay Kartal beat Sorana Cirstea 3-6 6-2 6-0

Shot of the day

Stanislas Wawrinka clinches victory with a backhand The Championships knows, and loves 😍#Wimbledon | @stanwawrinka pic.twitter.com/Ytto7oGPKJ
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 1, 2024

Stat of the day

230 – Daniil Medvedev has claimed his 230th ATP match win since the start of the 2020 season, the most of any player on the ATP Tour so far this decade. Octopus.#Wimbledon | @Wimbledon @atptour @ATPMediaInfo pic.twitter.com/CsedXEaw5p
— OptaAce (@OptaAce) July 1, 2024

Tale of the lucky loser

From lucky loser to a thoroughly deserving winner 👏
After replacing Aryna Sabalenka, Erika Andreeva made the most of her chance, advancing to the Second Round!#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/rAwS9EduB7
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 1, 2024

Erika Andreeva missed out on a place in the Wimbledon main draw on Thursday when she lost in the final round of qualifying, but received a reprieve at the last-minute when Sabalenka pulled out on Monday afternoon.

Hours later and Andreeva had booked a spot in round two with a 7-6 (5) 3-6 6-3 win over Emina Bektas on her debut at the All England Club.

With younger sister Mirra Andreeva going out later on Monday, world number 101 Erika Andreeva has gone from failing to qualify for this year’s Championships to being the last one standing among the talented siblings.