LONDON, June 26: Returning to the court where she won her first Grand Slam championship a year ago, Petra Kvitova overcame a shaky start and a late rain delay on Tuesday to open her Wimbledon title defence with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Akgul Amanmuradova.

Following Kvitova on Centre Court was two-time champion Rafael Nadal, and he found himself in an early hole just as she had. Nadal was down 4-0 in the opening set, but roared back to beat Brazilian left-hander Thomaz Bellucci 7-6, 6-2, 6-3. The Spaniard closed the match with an ace down the middle, his sixth of the day.

Nadal, coming off his record seventh French Open title, broke six times and had 35 winners and 18 errors. Having lost in last year’s final to Novak Djokovic, he is bidding for a 12th Grand Slam title.

Fifth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga took apart 2002 champion Lleyton Hewitt, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4. The Frenchman, who beat six-time champion Roger Federer last year to reach the semi-finals, broke the Australian once in each set and never lost serve.

Hewitt was one of four Australians in the men’s draw, and all bowed out in the first round. It marks the first time since 1938 that no Australian men have reached the second round at Wimbledon.

Playing his first match since having a medical procedure on his heart, 10th seed Mardy Fish of the US served 24 aces and beat Ruben Ramirez-Hidalgo of Spain 7-6, 7-5, 7-6 to reach the second round.

Four-time champion Serena Williams, meanwhile, returned to the same Court 2 where big sister Venus was upset a day earlier — and restored family pride by beating Barbora Zahlavova Strycova of the Czech Republic 6-2, 6-4.

In early women’s play, No 12 Vera Zvonareva completed a 2-6, 7-6, 6-4 win over Germany’s Mona Barthel in a match that had been suspended by darkness at one set apiece on Monday.

Also advancing to the second round was ninth-seeded Marion Bartoli of France, who downed Casey Dellacqua of Australia, 6-2, 6-4.

Francesca Schiavone, the 24th-seeded Italian, came from behind to overcome 18-year-old British wild card Laura Robson 2-6, 6-4, 6-4.

Schiavone, the 2010 French Open champion, received medical treatment after the first set for an apparent muscle problem. She was down 2-3 and 0-40 in the second set but saved the three break points and turned the match around against the 2008 Wimbledon junior champion.

In a men’s match between two rising stars of the game, 21-year-old Belgian wild card David Goffin — who reached the fourth round of the French Open and took a set off Roger Federer — rallied from a set down against 19-year-old Bernard Tomic to beat the 20th-seeded Australian, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.

Results (prefix number denotes seeding):

Men’s singles:

First round: Lukas Rosol (Czech Republic) bt Ivan Dodig (Croatia) 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7-0), 7-5; Grigor Dimitrov (Bulgaria) bt 32-Kevin Anderson (South Africa) 7-5, 7-6 (7-3), 6-7 (4-7), 6-3; Florent Serra (France) bt Andrey Kuznetsov (Russia) 3-6, 7-6 (7-3), 6-4, 4-6, 6-4; Marcos Baghdatis (Cyprus) bt Albert Montanes (Spain) 6-2, 6-4, 6-4; 2-Rafa Nadal (Spain) bt Thomaz Bellucci (Brazil) 7-6 (7-0), 6-2, 6-3; Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (Spain) bt Edouard Roger-Vasselin (France) 6-7 (2-7), 6-3, 7-6 (7-4), 5-7, 10-8; Lukas Lacko (Slovakia) beat Adrian Ungur (Romania) 7-6 (7-4), 6-1, 6-3; 5-Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (France) bt Lleyton Hewitt (Australia) 6-3, 6-4, 6-4; Go Soeda (Japan) bt Igor Kunitsyn (Russia) 6-3, 6-2, 6-1; Malek Jaziri (Tunisia) bt Juergen Zopp (Estonia) 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 9-7; Jarkko Nieminen (Finland) bt 14-Feliciano Lopez (Spain) 7-6 (7-4), 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4; 12-Nicolas Almagro (Spain) bt Olivier Rochus (Belgium) 6-7 (4-7), 3-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-2, 6-4; Jesse Levine (US) bt Karol Beck (Slovakia) 6-4, 6-7 (6-8), 6-3, 6-2; David Goffin (Belgium) bt 20-Bernard Tomic (Australia) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4; 10-Mardy Fish (US) bt Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo (Spain) 7-6 (7-3), 7-5, 7-6 (7-1) ; Benoit Paire (France) bt Matthew Ebden (Australia) 6-1, 6-3, 6-7 (1-7) 6-3; 19-Kei Nishikori (Japan) bt Mikhail Kukushkin (Kazakhstan) 7-5, 6-3, 6-4; Brian Baker (US) bt Rui Machado (Portugal) 7-6 (7-2), 6-4, 6-0; 22-Alexandr Dolgopolov (Ukraine) bt Alex Bogomolov Jr (Russia) 6-3, 6-4, 7-5; Nicolas Mahut (France) bt Paolo Lorenzi (Italy) 6-3, 5-7, 6-7 (3-7), 7-5, 6-2.

Women’s singles:

First round: 9-Marion Bartoli (France) bt Casey Dellacqua (Australia) 6-2, 6-4; 6-Serena Williams (US) bt Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (Czech Republic) 6-2, 6-4; Mirjana Lucic (Croatia) bt Alexandra Panova (Russia) 4-6, 6-3, 6-4; 28-Christina McHale (US) bt Johanna Konta (Britain) 6-7 (4-7), 6-2, 10-8; Kristyna Pliskova (Czech Republic) bt Polona Hercog (Slovenia) 6-2, 6-2; 4-Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) bt Akgul Amanmuradova (Uzbekistan) 6-4, 6-4; 31-Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (Russia) bt Sofia Arvidsson (Sweden) 6-1, 6-2; 24-Francesca Schiavone (Italy) bt Laura Robson (Britain) 2-6, 6-4, 6-4; 12-Vera Zvonareva (Russia) bt Mona Barthel (Germany) 2-6, 7-6 (7-3), 6-4; 25-Zheng Jie (China) bt Stephanie Dubois (Canada) 4-6, 6-4, 6-3; Yaroslava Shvedova (Kazakhstan) bt Chanelle Scheepers (South Africa) 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-5); Aleksandra Wozniak (Canada) bt Vera Dushevina (Russia) 6-2, 7-5; Kiki Bertens (Netherlands) bt 19-Lucie Safarova (Czech Republic) 6-3, 6-0.

Monday’s remaining results:

Men’s singles:

First round: Guillaume Rufin (France) bt Steve Darcis (Belgium) 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4; Denis Istomin (Uzbekistan) bt 23-Andreas Seppi (Italy) 6-7 (2-7), 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 8-6; Jerzy Janowicz (Poland) bt Simone Bolelli (Italy) 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3; Igor Andreev (Russia) bt Oliver Golding (Britain) 1-6, 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (9-7), 7-5; Ernests Gulbis (Latvia) bt 6-Tomas Berdych (Czech Republic) 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-4); Alejandro Falla (Colombia) bt 11-John Isner (US) 6-4, 6-7 (7-9), 3-6, 7-6 (9-7), 7-5; Xavier Malisse (Belgium) bt Marinko Matosevic (Australia) 6-2, 6-2, 7-5; Ryan Harrison (US) bt Lu Yen-hsun (Taiwan) 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2; 15-Juan Monaco (Argentina) bt Leonardo Mayer (Argentina) 6-4, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-5); Martin Klizan (Slovakia) bt Juan Ignacio Chela (Argentina) 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (8-6), 1-6, 11-9; 31-Florian Mayer (Germany) bt Dmitry Tursunov (Russia) 7-6 (7-3), 6-2, 6-3.
Women’s singles:
First round: Jamie Hampton (US) bt 27-Daniela Hantuchova (Slovakia) 6-4, 7-6 (7-1); Heather Watson (Britain) bt Iveta Benesova (Czech Republic) 6-2, 6-1; Mathilde Johansson (France) bt Lesia Tsurenko (Ukraine) 3-6, 6-0, 6-3; 17-Maria Kirilenko (Russia) bt Alexandra Cadantu (Romania) 6-3, 6-1; Silvia Soler Espinosa (Spain) bt Edina Gallovits-Hall (Romania) 4-6, 6-4, 10-8; Lourdes Dominguez Lino (Spain) bt Naomi Broady (Britain) 6-4, 7-6 (7-4); Kim Clijsters (Belgium) bt 18-Jelena Jankovic (Serbia) 6-2, 6-4; Ekaterina Makarova (Russia) bt Alberta Brianti (Italy) 6-2, 3-6, 6-3; 20 Nadia Petrova (Russia) bt Maria Elena Camerin (Italy) 6-0, 6-2; 30-Peng Shuai (China) bt Sandra Zaniewska (Poland) 6-2, 6-7 (3-7), 6-3; 23-Petra Cetkovska (Czech Republic) bt Vania King (US) 6-4, 6-2; 8-Angelique Kerber (Germany) bt Lucie Hradecka (Czech Republic) 6-4, 6-1; Sloane Stephens (US) bt Karolina Pliskova (Czech Republic) 6-2, 6-2; Timea Babos (Hungary) bt Melanie Oudin (US) 6-4, 4-6, 6-3.—Agencies