3…. 2…….. 1!

Just a short round up this evening of the day’s action from day 2 of the Aegon Championships at Queen’s club. If you read my earlier series '5 things we learned from the French Open 2017' then you will know that lesson 5 highlighted the unpredictable nature of the men’s and woman’s games so far this year. Today’s results have only strengthened this belief.

All started innocently enough as third seed Milos Raonic took to the centre court to face world number 698 Thanasi Kokkinakis. Although these stats make it sound like a demolition should have ensued the encounter was never going to be that straight forward. Raonic has not had a particularly convincing 2017 season so far. He has struggled with injury and is currently ranked number 16 in the ATP race to London. Opponent Kokkinakis had been ranked as highly as world number 69 back in June 2015 and is only 21 years old so clearly has talent well above what recent form would suggest. Still, with Kokkinakis low on match play (having undergone battles with injury in the past year) and Raonic coming into the grass season which has historically brought him good results, not many would have bet against the Canadian. Hence, when Raonic wasted 8 brake point opportunities in the first set and was stretched to a tie breaker it did not yet seem like time to panic. However, Kokkinakis raised his level shaking off the rust we would have expected to clinch the first set. He maintained this level for a straight sets victory 7-6 (7-5), 7-6(10-8). Raonic did not play badly but was sloppy at the net at times and ultimately did not take the chances he was given where his opponent most definitely did.

Third seed out and so second seed up! French Open runner up Stan Wawrinka was next on court to face Feliciano Lopez: a tough 1^st round for any player in the draw. The first match when transitioning from clay to grass is often a hard one and Wawrinka has expressed a lack of confidence on this surface compared to his trusty hard courts. It was not surprising that the first set was tight but Wawrinka was over reliant on his serve for free points throughout as he was clearly the more uncomfortable moving around the court. At times Wawrinka seemed to flex and stretch his left leg perhaps indicating some small discomfort around the knee. Hopefully this will not be a major problem for him heading into Wimbledon as he has the chance to capitalise on his 2^nd round defeat last year by gaining all important ranking points. His 7-6(7-4), 7-5 defeat to Lopez has, however, meant that it is Djokovic who will receive the 2^nd seeding at the third grand slam of the year.

World number 1 and defending queens’ champion Andy Murray has had difficulties this year but his run to the French Open semi-finals indicated that things may have been looking up. With two upsets complete it seemed unlikely that a third would follow suit. When opponent Alijaz Bedene pulled out of the first round and was replaced by lucky loser Jordan Thompson from qualifying Murray fans would be forgiven for having thought the result was in no doubt. Yet as the match unfolded Murray and supporters alike may have wished that Bedene had attempted to play as it was clear to see Thompson was in no way overwhelmed by the situation. He displayed determination and composure en route to a 7-6(7-4), 6-2 win: the biggest of his career to date. Murray, on the other hand, looked out of sorts sending many shots long and even more into the net. A worrying sign ahead of his Wimbledon defence.

The top 3 seeds all out in straight set succession. 3 2 1. Quite a shocking day. However the greatest surprise was yet to come. Yes, you guessed it! A Cilic vs. Isner match which did not involve any tie breaks!!! Fourth seed Marin Cilic restored order to the proceedings with a 7-5, 6-3 victory that took just over an hour.