Second seed Sabalenka first winner at Wimbledon in two years

Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka celebrates her match win against Romania's Monica Niculescu during their women's singles first round match of the 2021 Wimbledon Championships. Credit: AFP Photo

Second seed Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus won the first match at Wimbledon in two years on Monday, seeing off Romanian qualifier Monica Niculescu in straight sets.

Sabalenka won 6-1, 6-4 under the roof of Court One and will face either Danielle Lao of the United States or Britain's Katie Boulter for a place in the last 32.

Last year's Wimbledon was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic while play at this year's event was delayed by rain on the outside courts.