Novak Djokovic dried the court with his towel and urged the crowd to “blow” in a farcical rain delay as his Wimbledon title defence began with a win.
Djokovic beat Argentina’s Pedro Cachin 6-3 6-3 7-6 (7-4) on Centre Court.
But after the first set there was no play for 80 minutes, despite the closed roof, with Djokovic dabbing the grass before ground staff used leaf blowers.
When play resumed, the Serb broke Cachin’s serve twice in the second set and won the tie-break in the third.
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Djokovic, aiming to secure his eighth Wimbledon title and match Roger Federer’s record for a male player, will now play American Brandon Nakashima, 55th in the world, following his five-set win over Australia’s Jordan Thompson, ranked 70th.
Djokovic, seeking to match Margaret Court’s all-time record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles, was unfazed by the delay, breaking in the first game of the second set to establish an iron grip on the match, repeating the feat to seal the set.
Cachin, ranked 68th, dug deep in the third set, with neither player able to force a break in the early evening sunshine.
Djokovic was immediately on top in the tie-break, surging into a 6-2 lead and he wrapped up the match when Cachin netted.
The 36-year-old Serbian is chasing the first calendar Grand Slam in men’s tennis since 1969 after winning the Australian Open and French Open this year.
