6 key matches on Wimbledon’s opening day

Wimbledon’s two-year hiatus ends on Monday when play gets under way in the 2021 Championships.

Big names Rafael Nadal, Naomi Osaka and Simona Halep have all withdrawn but it promises to be another fascinating fortnight on the lawns of SW19.

Here, the PA news agency picks out six first-round matches that are not to be missed.

Novak Djokovic v Jack Draper

Francesca Jones v Coco Gauff

Coco Gauff reached the fourth round as a 15-year-old in 2019
Coco Gauff reached the fourth round as a 15-year-old in 2019 (Steven Paston/PA)

Ashleigh Barty v Carla Suarez Navarro

Nick Kyrgios v Ugo Humbert

Playing on grass persuaded Kyrgios to leave Australia for the first time since before the coronavirus pandemic started. It remains to be seen what condition the 26-year-old is in but he showed at the Australian Open that, on the big stage, he remains a serious danger. In the second round in Melbourne he claimed a dramatic five-set win over Frenchman Humbert, who is at a career-high ranking of 25 after recently winning the grass-court title in Halle.

Iga Swiatek v Hsieh Su-wei

Iga Swiatek won the Wimbledon junior title in 2018
Iga Swiatek won the Wimbledon junior title in 2018 (Nigel French/PA)

Sebastian Korda v Alex De Minaur

A meeting between two of the brightest young talents in the men’s game. Australian De Minaur is already a top-20 player and someone who enjoys playing on grass – he won the Viking International in Eastbourne. Twenty-year-old Korda is the son of former Australian Open champion Petr, and has leapt up to 50th in the rankings. He won his first ATP title on clay in Parma earlier this year.

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