Number three seed Rafael Nadal will play his first match today against Japanese qualifier Yuichi Sugita.

Last up on Court One, Nadal will hope to win comfortably having never lost to an opponent at a Grand Slam ranked as low as world number 274 Sugita. Potential second round opponent Nick Kyrgios was 144th when he beat Rafa at Wimbledon five years ago, which is to date the lowest ranked player Nadal has fallen to at a major.

The man from Mallorca has not won the title since 2010, and has only managed to win in the quarter-finals for two of the years since. Last year was a much better performance from the world number two however, as he made the semi-final, being edged out 10-8 in a fifth set against eventual champion Djokovic.

The 12 time Roland Garros winner Nadal has complained of the seeding formula in the build up to this year’s competition. Despite being ranked second in the world, due to past grass performances Roger Federer has passed him to the second seed spot. This has left Nadal with what many consider to be a very tough draw. Kyrgios, Shapovalov, Tsonga, Cilic, Thiem and Federer are all potential opponents down the line is Rafa’s draw.

Nadal and Sugita have never met before, though Nadal boasts 257 more grand slam wins than his Asian opponent. Sugita did look impressive during qualifying however, as he beat 2012 Nadal conqueror Luka Rosol of Czech Republic in straight sets. Yuichi also has a decent record on grass, winning the Challenger tournament at Surbiton two years ago. He has not played a professional tour match this year though.

Rafa boasts 48 Wimbledon match wins compared to Sugita’s one, which came against British wildcard Brydan Klein in 2017. Last year the Japanese opponent suffered a disappointing first round defeat to America’s Bradley Klahn.

Nadal will hope this match can be the start of a title challenging campaign.