Alcaraz starts Wimbledon title defense against dreadlocked Estonian

LONDON – Carlos Alcaraz begins the defense of his Wimbledon title at the All England Club on Monday (Tuesday Manila time), opening play on Centre Court against Estonia's Mark Lajal, the world's 262nd best player.

Alcaraz, who stunned seven-time champion Novak Djokovic in a five-set final in 2023, is looking to become just the sixth man to complete the French Open-Wimbledon double in the same season.

Also in action on the opening day are World No. 1 Jannik Sinner, US Open champion Coco Gauff and Australian Open winner Aryna Sabalenka.

AFP Sport looks at three matches to watch on Monday:

– Defending champion Alcaraz, still only 21, is chasing his fourth Grand Slam title and hopes to become only the sixth man after Rod Laver, Bjorn Borg, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic to win the French Open and Wimbledon back-to-back.

"I want to put my name on that short list to win Roland Garros and Wimbledon in the same year. I know that there's going to be a really difficult and big challenge for me, but I think I'm ready to do it," said the third-seeded Spaniard.

On Monday, he faces Estonia's qualifier Mark Lajal, a 21-year-old who had never won a Grand Slam qualifying match let alone a main draw tie before last week.

Lajal, the son of a motocross rider, has just two wins on the main tour in his career but if his playing statistics don't stand out, then his dreadlocked, blond hair style certainly turns heads.

"I've had them for a very long time. It has kind of become a big part of me and my image. A lot of people know me just from my dreads. I enjoy it and I think it's cool," he said.

This time last year, Lajal was losing a first round match at a second-tier Challenger event in the US and earning a paltry $780.

For making the first round at Wimbledon he is guaranteed $75,000.

The 22-year-old Sinner is alongside Alcaraz in the vanguard of tennis's next generation.

He won a maiden Slam at the Australian Open and then deposed Novak Djokovic as World No. 1, becoming the first Italian man to reach such heights.

Sinner made the quarter-finals at Wimbledon in 2022 and semi-finals last year where he was swept away in straight sets by Djokovic.

He arrives in London