The 137th edition of Wimbledon is underway

Ash Barty was in the BBC commentary box. Sir David Attenborough received a standing ovation in the Royal Box. David Beckham took his mum. We started under blue skies and ended up holding a brolly. And three Australians scored wins.

David Beckham and Mrs Sandra Beckham are seen in the Royal Box ahead of the Gentlemen's Singles first round match between Carlos Alcaraz of Spain and Dusan Lajovic of Serbia during day one of The Championships Wimbledon 2024.

Ash Barty was in the BBC commentary box. Sir David Attenborough received a standing ovation when he grabbed his seat in the Royal Box. David Beckham took his mum. We started under blue skies in London and ended up holding a brolly. Three Australians scored wins. The 137th edition of Wimbledon is underway.

A wonderful moment on Centre Court as the crowd rises for Sir David Attenborough 💚#Wimbledonpic.twitter.com/AtcwfoPHwm

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 1, 2024

Aleksander Vukic won a nerve-shredding five-setter against Sebastian Ofner to set up a date, most likely on Centre Court, against defending champion Carlos Alcaraz. Vukic snuck home 6-7 (9/11), 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (10/8) in three hours and 49 minutes.

Austria's Aleksander Vukic returns the ball to Australia's Sebastian Ofner during their men's singles tennis match on the first day of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships.

Jordan Thompson powered home from a two-set deficit to beat Russian Pavel Kotov 5-7, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 and in the third triumph among the 13-strong Australian contingent at the All England Club, with most playing on day two, Daria Saville skipped past American Payton Stearns 6-4, 6-2.

Ash Barty speaks about her Wimbledon return.

The 30-year-old Saville racked up her first win at Wimbledon in six years. “It’s funny,” she said. “I’ve had so much experience, I didn’t even realise it was my eighth Wimbledon. So I was like, ‘Okay, you’ve done it seven times before, you’ve had all of this experience. What are you going to do with it?’ I think that helped me knowing that I’ve done it before, it’s nothing new, I know what to expect, I know that I’m playing on a small court with everyone’s walking by and I thought that I handled it really well today.”

Daria Saville of Australia celebrates winning match point against Peyton Stearns of United States during the Ladies' Singles first round match on day one of The Championships Wimbledon 2024.

Out on court 10, where there’s no such thing as quiet, please, and where most folks seem to be passing through en route to one of the show courts, and where there’s no chance of Beckham and his mum being among the observers, Saville struck 20 winners against America’s World No.52. Saville next faces Ukrainian World No.19 Marta Kostyuk after taking her own ranking from the 200s to No.82 this year.

“I’m pretty happy with how I played and more so how I handled it,” she said. “In big moments I played good tennis and backed myself, instead of feeling anxious. I was like ‘Okay, just be clear. What are you going to do here?’ I almost felt like I welcomed that feeling of being nervous, of being anxious, instead of trying to fight it.”

Alex Bolt was beaten by eighth-seeded Casper Ruud 7-6 (7-2), 6-4, 6-4 and Max Purcell lost to Otto Virtamen 6-3, 6-2, 6-2. Barty was commentating on the evening Centre Court match between US Open champion Coco Gauff. She analysed the match as she player her tennis, in a no-nonsense, authoritative way. She was a pleasure to listen to. “A good egg,” was her description of American Caroline Dolehide, perhaps the first use of the term on the Beeb. Barty’s great gift to the broadcast is her extensive knowledge of the players. She was still on tour two years ago. Only three years have passed since she was Wimbledon champion.

Day two will feature a tricky opening assignment for Australia’s ninth-seeded Australian, Alex de Minaur, against his explosive mate, James Duckworth. And Ajla Tomljanovic will lock horns with Jelena Ostapenko in the latest round of their feisty rivalry, highlighted by their all-out slanging match at Wimbledon three years ago. Tomljanovic accused Ostapenko of faking injuries; Ostapenko suggested, in impolite terms, Tomljanovic was the worst player on tour.