Jan Mertl.....

from the Czech Republic, currently ranked 229th in the world, on his way to beating the splendidly named Jose Hernandez-Fernandez of the Dominican Republic in the first round of qualifying for Wimbledon at the Bank of England sports ground in Roehampton. The match was a full blooded contest with Mertl finally winning 3-6 7-5 15-13.

During the long final set the trainer was called for Mertl. Extra shot 1 shows him collapsing flat out on the court after the final point. In an exclusive post-match interview I asked him what the problem was and he said that he had pulled a thigh muscle which the trainer then strapped a little too tightly causing it to cramp in the final game. That's the slightly surreal aspect of the qualifying tournament - I was walking across a playing field chatting to a guy who next week could be surrounded by all the security and press nonsense of one of the biggest sporting events in the world!

Extra shot 2 shows Riko Sawayanagi serving in the foreground on her way to losing to Richel Hogenkamp 6-2 6-2.