Tim Henman blasts 'bizarre' Carlos Alcaraz live on BBC's Wimbledon coverage

British tennis icon Tim Henman expressed his bemusement after Carlos Alcaraz started his Wimbledon title defence with an out-of-sorts performance against Fabio Fognini. The retiring Italian left Alcaraz sweating on the hottest opening day in the tournament's history as he forced a deciding set on Centre Court.

The 2023 and 2024 champion, eyeing an incredible three-peat, eventually got the job done in four hours and 37 minutes, winning 7-5 6-7(5-7) 6-4 2-6 6-1. Alcaraz avoided "the biggest upset in Wimbledon history", in the words of the legendary Pat Cash, but Henman could not help but express concern over his display.

"I am so surprised at the poor execution and surprised at his reactions. He is missing shots that I cannot believe he is missing," Henman said on BBC One.

"It is certainly a concern for his coaching team. He has been pretty careless. He has set up points and, time and time again, made unforced errors.

"He keeps making life difficult for himself. Alcaraz is just making some easy misses here, it has been a very bizarre performance from him.

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"I do not think I have ever seen him so out of sorts. It certainly was not meant to go like this. I have never seen Carlos Alcaraz look this out of sorts on such a big stage.

"Carlos has set the bar for his performances so high because his form has been absolutely sensational.

"But his first serve percentage has been rather low in this game. It has been around 50 per cent, so Fabio Fognini has been getting plenty of chances to attack the second serve.

"The unforced errors have continued to flow as well, so there has not been a great deal of rhythm, which is so rare for him."

After surviving a scare against Fognini, Alcaraz will face British qualifier Oliver Tarvet in the second round.

The world No. 733 produced an impressive performance to beat fellow qualifier, Switzerland's Leandro Riedi, in straight sets on Monday.

Alcaraz has his sights firmly on a third consecutive Wimbledon crown, which would be his sixth Grand Slam at the age of 22.

But the Spaniard will have to drastically improve if he is to stand a chance of making it all the way at SW19 this year.