Naomi Osaka's form has been erratic since she returned after her maternity break at the start of last year, but there had been glimmers of hope for the current world number 53.
Four-times Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka overcame some first-round jitters to survive a scrap with Australian qualifier Talia Gibson and advance at Wimbledon with a battling 6-4, 7-6(4) first-round win on Monday.
Osaka may have no great love for Wimbledon's lawns, having never got past the third round at the grasscourt major, but she had enough quality and fight to subdue a spirited Gibson.
With the evening shadow spilling across Court 18 to take the sting out of what had been a ferociously hot day, former world number one Osaka had to fight back in both sets against the Aussie.
Yet after a second-round loss last year, the threat of another early exit was seemingly enough for the Japanese player to find extra gears when it mattered most.
"I think just making my match today, playing someone that I've never played before, and also getting over the first-round nerves was a little tricky," she told reporters. "I'm glad that I did it, and I hope that I have many more matches to come."
Gibson was spraying winners around the court when she broke to go 3-1 up, but Osaka took stock and upped the pressure, breaking back to level at 3-3 and then again to take the first set as the Australian's error count soared.
Gibson, the world number 126, could have crumbled at that point, but instead she dug in, breaking for a 4-3 lead before a rollercoaster finale.
The Australian, who was making her main draw debut, twice served for the set but was denied both times as Osaka conjured crucial breaks to force a tiebreak, where her extra class told.
Osaka's form has been erratic since she returned after her maternity break at the start of last year, but there had been glimmers of hope for the current world number 53.
She reached the Australian Open third round in January before retiring injured and made the fourth round at the 1,000-level events in Miami and Rome this year.
Yet Osaka suffered a first-round loss at the French Open and has not had back-to-back wins on any surface since the Italian Open in May.
If she is to end that run at Wimbledon, the Japanese player will need to overcome either Katerina Siniakova or fifth-seeded Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen in the second round.
Osaka will need to show more of that battling spirit if she is to find some form on a surface she admits does not bring out the best in her game.
"I know the grass season hasn't been particularly amazing for me this year, but I'm really happy with how much I fight every match. No matter what or no matter how I think I play, I feel like the mentality is pretty solid."
Pain free Vondrousova getting old magic back on grass
For a player who grew up on the clay courts of the Czech Republic, Marketa Vondrousova has a surprisingly special relationship with the lawns and now she is swinging freely without pain, few will fancy facing her at Wimbledon.
The 26-year-old Vondrousova claimed the title in stunning fashion two years ago, becoming the first unseeded woman to do so in the professional era by beating Ons Jabeur in the final.
Since then she has been blighted by a shoulder injury that had her considering her future in the sport.
But in the build-up to Wimbledon she won the grasscourt title in Berlin, her first title since winning at the All England Club, and on Monday she took out American 32nd seed McCartney Kessler 6-1, 7-6(3) to set up an enticing second-round clash with British number one Emma Raducanu.
It is a stark contrast to 12 months ago when she opened Centre Court play on the first Tuesday as defending champion but lost to Spain's Jessica Bouzas Maneiro.
Talking about the journey she has been on since lifting the trophy on Centre Court, left-hander Vondrousova said coming back from surgery had been a tough battle.
"I didn't play for such a long time. I had surgery here last year. It was a tough battle. I was injured. I got injured in Berlin (last year), so it was kind of like so-so," she said.
"I'm just really trying to enjoy every match, because you know, it really looked bad with my shoulder a couple of months ago, so I didn't even know if I can be here again on the court.
"Now I take it match by match, and I'm just trying to really enjoy everything here and grateful to be back."
Next up for Vondrousova is British favourite Raducanu, whose Grand Slam breakthrough in 2021 was even more surprising, winning the U.S. Open as a teenaged qualifier.
Raducanu has also suffered with injuries since that Flushing Meadows fairytale, although her form is returning.
Unlike Vondrousova, however, Raducanu has had to live life in an unforgiving spotlight.
"I feel like she had it way worse because she is from bigger country. She had crazy pressure. I feel like she has it in every tournament all the time," Vondrousova said when asked if she could relate to Raducanu's journey since fame arrived.
"I feel like she's getting better and better with it, but yeah, overall it must have been crazy for her to live all of that."
Vondrousova lost to Raducanu at Wimbledon in 2021, shortly before the Briton's New York run. But she did get the better of the British player in Abu Dhabi this year.
The Czech, who sports a series of tattoos, said grass has now become one of her favourite surfaces, not surprisingly as two of her three titles have been on the turf.
"A couple of years ago something clicked, and I feel great on grass," she said.
