WIMBLEDON, England (AP)—Returning to Wimbledon gave Lindsay Davenport a slight case of stage fright.
The three-time Grand Slam champion overcame her butterflies and teamed with Bob Bryan to win in the first round of mixed doubles Friday, beating Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi and Alla Kudryavtseva 7-6 (3), 6-3.
The tournament is Davenport’s first since the 2008 U.S. Open, when she reached the third round in singles and doubles.
“I’m a little nervous and stressed out,” she said with a laugh. “I was getting sick to my stomach before we went out there, like, ‘What are we doing?’ But I miss having a purpose at home on some days, so it was fun getting up to practice for this.”
Davenport, 34, is the mother of two. She won the singles title at Wimbledon in 1999.
“It’s a comeback, but it’s not like a full-on comeback,” she said. “It’s doubles.”
“Double dipping,” Bryan said.
Davenport plans to play women’s doubles in two tournaments this summer in her native California, but has no tour events on her schedule beyond that. She said she definitely won’t play at the U.S. Open.
Bryan and Davenport are unseeded at Wimbledon and low-key about their chances.
“We have low expectations,” Bryan said. “No pressure.”
But he gave Davenport a rave review for her first-round performance.
“She played great,” he said. “You can’t take away the ball striking, and that is what has always impressed me about Lindsay—the way the ball comes off her racket, and the sound. It was a pleasure to be on the court with her.”
Bryan said he may play mixed doubles with Venus Williams at the 2012 Olympics in London.