Top seed Carlos Alcaraz opened his Wimbledon campaign in ruthless fashion by sending French veteran Jeremy Chardy into retirement with a 6-0, 6-2, 7-5 drubbing on Tuesday as persistent showers severely disrupted Tuesday's schedule.

At about the same time as eight-time champion Roger Federer was receiving a rapturous reception as a Royal Box guest on Centre Court, Alcaraz showed why he is billed as the future of men’s tennis over on Court One.

Under the roof, the 20-year-old Alcaraz subjected the unfortunate Chardy to a high-profile pummelling, firing down ferocious serves and rasping forehands with frightening power.

US Open champion Alcaraz, who returned to the top of the ATP rankings after winning the Queen’s Club title on grass last week, blasted through the opening set in 20 minutes as Chardy struggled with a rash of double-faults.

When the Spaniard won the first two games of the second set it began to look ugly for the 36-year-old Chardy whose 56th and final grand slam tournament was turning into a horror show.

Chardy, the former world No. 25 who reached the fourth round here in 2014 and boasts a win over Federer, finally got on the scoreboard with a service hold greeted by warm applause.

He even turned the match into a contest in the third set as the rifle-shot sound of Alcaraz’s ball striking was temporarily muffled by rain hammering on the translucent roof.

Alcaraz trailed 4-2 after a sloppy service game but he was not in the mood for retirement gifts and buckled down again to hit back and finish off his opponent in a shade under two hours, sealing victory with a 10th ace.

Tougher tests will come for Alcaraz with the likes of Germany’s Alexander Zverev and Alex de Minaur lurking in his section of the draw.

But they way he began on Tuesday augurs well for his prospects of going very deep.

One player certainly in no doubt as to Alcaraz’s chances is last year’s runner-up Nick Kyrgios who pulled out of the tournament on Sunday evening with a wrist injury.

“He’s got a bit of both. He has that game style and consistency and then he’s also the showman,” the Australian told the BBC. “He’s got a bit of Novak, he’s got a bit of me and a bit of Rafa. It’s a new evolution of tennis player.”

Murray lifts gloom

Not many sports events can turn to a knight of the realm to lift the gloom but the rainy Tuesday was saved by a virtuoso performance from Sir Andy Murray which had Centre Court cooing in pleasure.

A classic battle of Britain it wasn't, as opponent Ryan Peniston failed to live up to the occasion, but Murray — who has revelled in National Treasure status since famously ending Britain's 77-year wait for a home men's singles champion in 2013 — played his part to perfection, winning 6-3, 6-0, 6-1.

"Obviously it is amazing to be back here on centre court," said former world No.1 and twice Wimbledon champion Murray after his first-round victory.

Rybakina advances

Defending champion Elena Rybakina came from a set down on Centre Court to beat American Shelby Rogers 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 in the first round.

The Kazakh looked to still be suffering from the illness that forced her out of the French Open last month when she was broken in the first game.

Rogers powered through the first set with Rybakina looking out of practice having pulled out of a warm-up tournament in Eastbourne due to a virus.

However, the third seed roared back in the second, showing the kind of strength and composure she utilised to claim her first grand slam title in London last year.

Second seed Aryna Sabalenka made short work of Hungary's Panna Udvardy with a powerful 6-3, 6-1 victory.

The Belarusian, unable to play last year because of Wimbledon's ban on Russians and Belarusians in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine, charmed the crowd with some dazzling play.

"I didn't realise how much I missed this place until today," Sabalenka said on court.

Jabeur’s mission

Last year’s Wimbledon runner-up Ons Jabeur made a good start to her bid to capture a maiden grand slam title as the world No. 6 eased past unseeded Pole Magdalena Frech 6-3, 6-3.

Tunisia’s Jabeur has struggled to build momentum during an injury-hit season and her preparation for the grasscourt major was far from ideal with early losses in Berlin and Eastbourne, but the sixth seed showed her calibre against Frech.

“I always feel so great to come back here. Last year I had an amazing run and hopefully this year it will be a little bit better,” said Jabeur, who lost to Elena Rybakina in last year’s final.

“I walked into the locker room and there was Elena’s photo with the trophy so that didn’t help at all,” she joked.

“But it’s amazing to come back here, just the atmosphere, the grass is so beautiful and I love connecting with nature.”

After narrowly missing the opportunity to break the 70th-ranked Frech early with two wayward drop shots, Jabeur got her nose in front in the fifth game and she raced through the opening set.

Reuters