Top men stride through on opening day

Champion Roger Federer made a winning return to Wimbledon's lush green lawns yesterday, reaching the second round of the grasscourt grand slam with a 6-4 6-2 6-4 win over Paul-Henri Mathieu.

The Swiss world number one opened his campaign for a third consecutive All England Club title as early morning stormclouds cleared to leave Centre Court bathed in sunshine.

"Definitely a good start to the tournament," Federer said.

"There's always something special when you come back and try to defend the Wimbledon championship.

"I'm definitely very happy to have done that... very important first step."

Federer, who clattered 18 aces past his French opponent, was joined in the second round by the man he considers a main rival for his crown, 2002 champion Lleyton Hewitt.

The Australian baseliner wasted no time sweeping aside Belgium's Christophe Rochus 6-3 6-3 6-1 in 92 minutes.

"It was a good hit out without wasting too much energy," was Hewitt's verdict.

Russia's Marat Safin met no trouble beating Thailand's Paradorn Srichaphan 6-2 6-4 6-4 to reach the second round.

The fifth seed and Australian Open champion looked unusually comfortable on a surface he admits is not his favourite against an opponent known for his serve-volley game on grass.

Safin broke in the first game of the match and never looked back, clubbing winners from all angles with his serve and backhand particularly impressive.

Britain's Greg Rusedski also powered his way into the second round with a workmanlike 6-3 4-6 6-2 6-1 victory over Spaniard Alberto Martin.

"This was a good match for me," Rusedski told Reuters after dismissing his first round opponent in an hour and 50 minutes.

"It was good to get used to the grass and I was happy with the last two sets. It was a good performance today. It is always nice to get through the first round," he added.

Women's top seed Lindsay Davenport thrashed Russia's Alina Jidkova 6-0 6-2 and third seed Amelie Mauresmo beat Hungary's Melinda Czink 6-3 6-2 but ninth seed Anastasia Myskina had a scare before finally scrambling over the first hurdle.

Russia's first women's grand slam winner when she triumphed at the French Open last year, Myskina was pressed all the way before beating Czech qualifier Katerina Bohmova 5-7 7-6 6-4.

Myskina trailed 4-1 in the second set and 3-0 in the third before winning both to avert a second successive first round loss at a grand slam tournament.

Last month she became the first defending champion to lose in the opening round at Roland Garros when she lost to Spain's Maria Sanchez Lorenzo.

"I don't know if she plays like this all the time but I think she played a pretty good match," Myskina said. "I'm very happy that I fought back. It was a happy ending for me."

First Indian

Teenager Sania Mirza became the first Indian woman to reach the second round of Wimbledon with a hard-fought 6-3 3-6 8-6 victory over Japan's Akiko Morigami.

The 18-year-old's victory set up an intriguing second-round showdown with US Open champion and fifth seed Svetlana Kuznetsova, who will be aiming to avenge her surprise defeat by the Indian in Dubai earlier this year.

Kuznetsova thrashed Britain's Rebecca Llewellyn 6-0 6-1.

Kim Clijsters moved untroubled into the second round with a 6-2 6-3 defeat of British wildcard Katie O'Brien.

The Belgian, lurking dangerously as the 15th seed, raised her game when required to see off the 19-year-old, who sits more than 300 places below her in the WTA rankings.