Wimbledon day three: Emma Raducanu leads British bid for third round

Raducanu is one of three British women in singles action on Wednesday.

Emma Raducanu will be looking to reach the third round (John Walton/PA) (PA Wire)

Emma Raducanu will eye a place in Wimbledon’s third round when she returns to action at the All England Club on Wednesday.

Raducanu is one of three British women scheduled for action on day three as they look to follow up first-round wins.

The men’s draw promises a couple of big blockbusters, while Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev will be expected to make quick progress.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at what is in store on day three.

Brit watch

(PA Graphics) (PA Graphics)

Emma Raducanu is back in action and will be on Court One for the first time since her breakthrough run at the 2021 Championships.

The former US Open champion takes on world number 33 Elise Mertens in the final match scheduled on that court.

Sonay Kartal and Lily Miyazaki will also be in second-round action after their impressive wins on Monday.

Kartal will play world number 45 Clara Burel while Miyazaki challenges 14th seed and Eastbourne champion Daria Kasatkina.

Dan Evans will be back to complete his first-round match after bad light stopped play on Tuesday night, with the British number three a set down to 24th seed Alejandro Tabilo.

Match of the day

Jannik Sinner will face a big test in the second round (Zac Goodwin/PA) (PA Wire)

Jannik Sinner, the world number one and top seed at Wimbledon, may be ruing his luck after the draw pitted him against fellow Italian Matteo Berrettini in the second round.

Berrettini reached the final in 2021, missed the 2022 Championships after testing positive for coronavirus and, as an unseeded player last year, knocked out seeds Alex De Minaur and Alexander Zverev before losing in four sets to eventual champion Alcaraz in the last 16.

Again unseeded after struggling with injuries, the big-serving Berrettini will provide a stern test for Sinner, who reached the quarter-final in 2022 and the semis last year – losing to Novak Djokovic on both occasions.

Old guard set for battle

While the 22-year-old world number one takes centre stage, two veterans will face each other on Court Two.

Three-time grand slam champion Stan Wawrinka, 39, meets 37-year-old Gael Monfils for a place in the third round.

The pair’s combined age is the oldest in a Wimbledon men’s singles match since Rod Laver beat Bob Howe in the first round back in 1971, according to Opta.

But Wawrinka, perhaps keen for an early night, appeared irked he was left waiting to find out what time his match was taking place as he questioned where the order of play was on social media.

Medvedev’s request denied

Daniil Medvedev feels at home on Court One (Zac Goodwin/PA) (PA Wire)

Daniil Medvedev has never lost a match on Court One at Wimbledon, with his run last year coming to an end in the semi-finals when he switched to Centre to face Alcaraz.

After starting his campaign with a routine victory, the Russian said: “I’m really happy with my level and I’ve still never lost on Court One, so hopefully I can play a lot more matches on this court.”

So where has he been scheduled to play France’s Alexandre Muller on Wednesday? Centre Court…

Order of play

Naomi Osaka will be back on Centre Court (Mike Egerton/PA) (PA Wire)

Centre Court from 1.30pm:Daniil Medvedev (5) v Alexandre MullerNaomi Osaka v Emma Navarro (19)Jannik Sinner (1) v Matteo Berrettini

Court One from 1pm:Coco Gauff (2) v Anca TodoniCarlos Alcaraz (3) v Aleksandar VukicEmma Raducanu v Elise Mertens

Weather

Light rain changing to cloudy by late morning with highs of 19 degrees Celsius, according to the Met Office.