There is always something special about the first day's play at Wimbledon. The green of the grass, the sing of tennis balls hitting the rackets, the drone of commercial jets approaching Heathrow as they pass over SW19. There is something ageless about its demeanour, a great event in the annual sporting calendar. International to be sure, yet subtly branded as the quintessential British occasion.

This year the enticement is great, certainly in the men’s game. For this year the current king of the centre-court and 5-time winner faces perhaps the biggest challenge to his supremacy in this arena. I am speaking, of course, of Roger Federer.

No-one can doubt his mastery in the contemporary sport. Yet voices are being raised about his current form. Losses to the Serb Novak Djokovic in the semis of the Australian earlier in the year, overwhelmed by Rafael Nadal in the final at Roland-Garros, (going down 0-6 in the third and final set), there are hints that perhaps his dominance of the men’s game is about to end. And with only two tournament victories since January, his No. 1 ATP ranking is under threat.

Monday afternoon he took to centre-court facing one-time doubles-partner and friend Dominik Hrbaty of Slovakia to open Wimbledon 2008. They had met twice in competition, Hrbaty winning both times, though that was all of four years ago.

Opening matches are sometimes tricky. There is the matter of nerves, how the court will play, and the fact that for a defending champion the opponent has nothing to lose. Defeat is perhaps inevitable, but that can add an edge to a lesser ranked player’s daring.

Yet none of that seemed to have any impact on Roger Federer this afternoon. With a straight sets victory — 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 — he gave an exhibition of his easy-to-watch but punishingly effective game. In his 60th win on grass (without loss of serve), he seemed if anything to be in the best of form. Breaking serve with ease, moving about the court in an almost languid manner, he never looked in doubt.