The former Wimbledon champion, Maria Sharapova, advanced to the second round against the British No2, Johanna Konta, who was unable to translate her recent impressive grass court form into a shock on Centre Court.
The Russian, ranked 122 places about Konta, sealed a 6-2, 6-2 victory with little drama.
“The first match of Wimbledon is never the easiest one. I had an opponent who was a crowd favourite,” said Sharapova afterwards. “I was happy I was able to stay focused throughout the match. I anticipated the ball pretty well and returned pretty good.