Play backs up at Wimbledon after day one downpour

Wimbledon organisers have a heavy backlog of play to start clearing today after rain wiped out hours of tennis.

It is only day two of the championship but torrential downpours over south west London yesterday meant a series of games were suspended and others did not even begin.

Andy Murray was one of those lucky enough to finish his match after Centre Court's retractable roof meant he could continue his first round battle with Spaniard Daniel Gimeno-Traver.

The Scot had a shaky start but came back to win 4-6 6-3 6-0 6-0 although there was frustration for fans when SW19 bosses pulled the plug on the big screen - where thousands of supporters watch from Murray Mount - after torrential rain made the spot unsafe.

It was the first time the screen has been turned off due to health and safety concerns.
Organisers said yesterday's attendance was 38,617, 1,070 down on the opening day last year.
Forecasters said the weather today would only be a slight improvement with showers throughout the morning.

MeteoGroup UK predicted poor conditions would last into the afternoon although the sun is expected to come out later.

The news will concern officials desperate to get the tournament moving with a host of exciting matches awaiting thousands of fans.

First on Centre Court is four times women's champion Serena Williams who plays French opponent Aravane Rezai in the first round as she tries to defend her 2010 title.

Following her will be six time winner and number three seed Roger Federer with a first round tie against Mikhail Kukushkin.

World number two Novak Djokovic is third on Centre Court, against Frenchman Jeremy Chardy.
Another highlight of today's schedule of play is the fourth match on No. 3 Court - a repeat of tennis's longest ever game.

Last year John Isner and Nicolas Mahut made history with a five-set epic which lasted more than 11 hours. Isner won but went on to lose the next round because he was so exhausted.

Remarkably, the American and the Frenchman defied the odds and were drawn to do battle again this year.

Today also sees Britain's top woman player Elena Baltacha - ranked 68 in the world - who appears on court 12 against Mona Barthel.