WIMBLEDON, England -- In keeping with custom, the defending Wimbledon men's champion played the opening match Monday on Centre Court. And Roger Federer was ready.
Back on his favorite stage, the top-ranked Federer hit four aces in his first service game and successfully began his bid for a third consecutive Wimbledon title by beating Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-4, 6-2, 6-4.
Federer walked on the hallowed court to a warm ovation, hit 18 aces and extended his grass-court winning streak to 30 matches, including 15 at the All England Club.
"A good start," Federer said. "I definitely feel sort of relieved after this start and look forward to the rest. You're into the tournament, you've seen the fans and you don't have to leave right away. So that's nice."
No. 3-seeded Lleyton Hewitt, the 2002 champion, hit 19 aces and beat Christophe Rochus 6-3, 6-3, 6-1. Hewitt is playing in just his second tournament after being sidelined for 11 weeks by foot and rib injuries.
Anastasia Myskina, the 2004 French Open champion, was on the verge of her second successive first-round exit at a major event when she rallied to beat 18-year-old qualifier Katerina Bohmova 5-7, 7-6 (6-4), 6-4.
No. 10 Patty Schnyder instead became the first seeded player to be eliminated. She was upset by Antonella Serra Zanetti 6-4, 6-7 (7-8), 6-3.
Top-ranked Lindsay Davenport, the 1999 champion, needed just 41 minutes to beat Alina Jidkova 6-0, 6-2. Davenport had 29 winners and just nine unforced errors.
No. 3 Amelie Mauresmo beat lucky loser Melinda Czink 6-3, 6-2. U.S. Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, seeded fifth, drubbed Rebecca Llewellyn 6-0, 6-1. No. 13 Elena Likhovtseva swept Anna Smashnova 6-2, 6-2.
No. 23 Ai Sugiyama lost to Roberta Vinci 6-2, 2-6, 6-4.
Wild card David Sherwood, an Englishman ranked 261st, delighted the home crowd by winning his Wimbledon debut against Ricardo Mello, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.
American Taylor Dent, seeded 24th, lost serve just once and beat qualifier Dick Norman 7-6 (6-4), 7-6 (6-4), 4-6, 6-7 (7-9), 6-1. Dent hit 23 aces, Norman 25.
Following morning thunderstorms, the tournament began in sunshine with temperatures heading into the low 80s, and as usual, grass brought out the best in Federer. He came to the net infrequently but played with polish from the baseline, hitting 33 winners with just 15 unforced errors.
