Even the biggest stars of tennis feel nerves before first-round matches at Wimbledon and other Slams

LONDON (AP) — Carlos Alcaraz already owns three Grand Slam titles, including from Wimbledon a year ago, and yet he spoke after his opening victory at this year's edition of the tournament about feeling nervous before setting foot on Centre Court, despite going up against a player who never before had played at any major tournament.

Coco Gauff, the reigning U.S. Open champion and a French Open runner-up two years ago, said after her win in the same stadium that, sure, she's played “on a lot of big courts,” but each time she competes on that particular patch of grass, “It's the most nervous I ever feel playing tennis — even more than playing a Grand Slam final.”

Why would such accomplished athletes still get the jitters? Especially in the first round, which was scheduled to wrap up Tuesday at the All England Club, and in what should, in theory, be their easiest contests over what they hope will be a two-week stay in the bracket? Turns out that tennis players, almost uniformly, insist that initial matches at one of their sport's four most prestigious events — the Australian Open in January, the French Open in May, Wimbledon in late June or early July, and the U.S. Open in August — give them reason to worry, no matter how many times they've won at that stage.

“I would lie if I would say I’m not nervous, because everybody is, I think. There is a lot of pressure, especially when you play well and you already know that you can achieve this step; people are expecting it to happen again and again and again,” said Iga Swiatek, who just won her fifth major championship at the French Open and is seeded No. 1 at Wimbledon. "You need that stress to get you on the right level of motivation and readiness.”